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THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN 



MEXICO 



ADVENTURES OF TWO YOUTHS IN A JOURNEY TO 

NORTHERN AND CENTRAL MEXICO, CAMPEACHEY, AND 'YUCATAN, WITH A 

DESCRIPTION OF THE REPUBLICS OF CENTRAL AMERICA 

AND OF THE NICARAGUA CANAL 



BY 




THOMAS W: KNOX 



AUTHOR OF 

"THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN THE FAR EAST" "IN SOUTH AMERICA" "IN RUSSIA" 

"ON THE CONGO" AND "IN AUSTRALASIA" "THE YOUNG NIMRODS" 

"THE VOYAGE OF THE 'VIVIAN'" ETC. 



SUustratei 




NEW YORK 
HARPER & BROTHERS, FRANKLIN SQUARE 

1890 



By THOMAS W. KNOX. 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN THE FAR EAST. Five Vol- 
umes. Copiously Illustrated. 8vo, Cloth, $3 00 eacli. The 
volumes sold separately. Each volume complete in itself. 
I. Adventures of Two Youths in a Journey to .Japan and China. 
II. Adventures op Two Youths in a Journey to Siam and Java. 'With 
Descriptions of Cochin-China, Cambodia, Sumatra, and the Malay Archipelago. 

III. Adventures of Two Youths in a Journey to Cey-lon and India. With 
Descriptions of Borneo, the Philippine Islands, and Burmah. 

IV. Adventures op Two Youths in a Journey to Egytt and Palestine. 
V. Advestuees of Two Youths in a Journey through Africa. 

THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN SOUTH AMERICA. Adven- 
tures of Two Youths in a Journey through Ecuador, Peru, 
Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, Argentine Republic, and Chili; with 
Descriptions of Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego, and Voyages 
upon the Amazon and La Plata Rivers. Copiously Illustrated. 
8vo, Cloth, $3 00. 

THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN THE RUSSIAN EMPIRE. 
Adventures of Two Youths in a Journey in European and 
Asiatic Russia, with Accounts of a Tour across Siberia, Voy- 
ages on the Amoor, Volga, and other Rivers, a Visit to Central 
Asia, Travels among the Exiles, and a Historical Sketch of the 
Empire from its Foundation to the Present Time. Copiously 
Illustrated. 8vo, Cloth, |3 00. 

THE BOY TRAVELLERS ON THE CONGO. Adventures of 
Two Youths in a Journey with Henry M. Stanley "Through 
the Dark Continent." Copiously Illustrated. 8vo, Cloth, $3 00. 

THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN AUSTRALASIA. Adventu -es of 
Two Youths in a Journey to the Sandwich, Marquesas, Sou.ety, 
Samoan, and Feejee Islands, and through the Colonies of New 
Zealand, New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, Tasmania, and 
South Australia. Copiously Illustrated. 8vo, Cloth, $3 00. 

THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. Adventures of Two 
Youths in a Journey to Northern and Central Mexico, Cam- 
peachey, and Yucatan, with a Description of the Republics of 
Central America, and of the Nicaragua Canal. Copiously 
Illustrated. 8vo, Cloth, $3 00. 

THE VOYAGE OF THE "VIVIAN" TO THE NORTH POLE 
AND BEYOND. Adventures of Two Youths in the Open 
Polar Sea. Copiously Illustrated. 8vo, Cloth, $2 50. 

HUNTING ADVENTURES ON LAND AND SEA. Two 
Volumes. Copiously Illustrated. 8vo, Cloth, $3 50 each. The 
volumes sold separately. Each volume complete in itself. 

I. The Young Nimrods in North America. 
II. The Young Niilrods Around the World. 



Published by HARPER & BROTHERS, New Y'ork. 

Any of the above volumes sent by mail, postage prepaid, to any part of the United 
States or Canada, on receipt of the price. 



Copyright, 1889, by Harper & Brothers. — All rights reserved. 



i-'ii- 1 



'1 



PREFACE. 



UNTIL within the past few years, Mexico was a country not easily 
reached from the principal cities of the United States, and our rela- 
tions with it were by no means intimate. Since the completion of the 
railway from the frontier of Texas to the heart of the most northerly of 
the Spanish- American republics, there has been a rapid development of 
commercial and social relations between Mexico and the United States, 
and the tide of travel from one country to the other is steadily increasing 
year by year. These circumstances have led the author of " The Boy 
Travellers" to believe that his young friends everywhere would welcome 
a book describing the land of the Aztecs, its history and resources, the 
manners and customs of its people, and the many curious things to be 
seen, and adventures passed through, in a journey from one end of that 
countiy to th'- 'other. 

In this belief he sought the aid of his and their friends, Frank and 
Fred, immediately after their return from Australasia. Ever ready to be 
of service, the youths assented to his request to make a tour of the Mexi- 
can republic, in company with their guide and mentor, Doctor Bronson, 
and the result of their journey is set forth in the following pages. It is 
confidently hoped that the narrative will be found in every jDarticular 
fully equal to any of its predecessors in the series to which it belongs. 

The methods on which the Boy Travellers have hitherto performed 
their work have been adhered to in the present volume. In addition to 
his personal acquaintance with Mexico and travels in that country, the 
author has drawn upon the observations of those who have preceded and 
followed him there. He has consulted books of history, travel, and sta- 
tistics in great number, has sought the best and most accurate maps, and 
while his work was in progress he consulted many persons familiar with 
Mexico, and was in frequent correspondence with gentlemen now residing 
there. He has sought to bring the social, political, and commercial his- 
tory of the country down to the latest date, and to present a truthful 

A 



VI PREFACE. 

picture of the present status of our sister republic. The result of his 
efforts he submits herewith to the judgment of his readers. 

Many of the works that have been consulted are named in the text, 
but it has not been convenient to refer to all. Among those to wliich the 
author is indebted may be mentioned the following: Bishop's "Old Mex- 
ico and her Lost Provinces," Griffin's "Mexico of To-day," Haven's "Our 
Next-door I^eighbor," Charnay's "Ancient Cities of the New World," 
Squier's "Nicaragua" and "Central America," Wells's "Honduras," Ste- 
phens's " Travels in Central America, Chiapas, and Yucatan," Baldwin's 
"Ancient America," Wilson's "Mexico and its Eeligions," Abbott's "Her- 
nando Cortez," Prescott's " Conquest of Mexico," Ober's "Travels in Mex- 
ico," Geiger's " Peep at Mexico," Gooch's " Face to Face with the Mexi- 
cans," Chevalier's "Mexique Ancien et Moderne," and the hand-books of 
Janvier, Conkling, and Hamilton. 

As in the other "Boy Traveller" volumes, the author is indebted to 
the liberality of his publishers, Messrs. Harper & Brothers, for the use of 
engravings that have appeared in previous publications relative to Mexico 
and Central America, in addition to those specially ]3repared for this book. 
As a result of their generosity, he has been enabled to add greatly to the 
interest of the work, particularly to the younger portion of his readers, 
for whom illustrations always have an especial charm. 

T. W. K. 

New York, June, 1889, 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 

Preparations for Departure. — Plans for the Journey. — To Mexico by Rail. — Baggage, and 
Books on the Country. — Brushing up their Knowledge of Spanish. — Westward from New 
York. — A Halt at St. Louis. — San Antonio, Texas. — Visit to the Alamo. — Reminiscences 
of the Fall op the Alamo. — Battle op San Jacinto and Independence of Texas. — Notes 
ON THE Railways of Northern Mexico. — Old Texas and Modern Changes. — " G. T. T." — 
Present Wealth op the State. — Arrival on the Frontier of Mexico '. ..Pii£;e 1 



CHAPTER H. 

Hotels on the Frontier. — Accommodations at Laredo. — Smuggling over the Border. — Lakedo 
AS A Railway Centre. — The Rio Grande and its Peculiarities.— Rivers Beneath the 
Sands.— Entering Mexican Territory. — Examinations at the Custom-house. — Mexican 
Tariffs. — Bribery among Officials. — Leaving Nuevo Laredo. — A Dreary Plain. — Fellow- 
passengers WITH OUR Friends. — A Mexican Irishman. — People at the Stations. — Adobe 
Houses; How they are Made. — The Land of Manana. — Poco Tiempo and Quien Sabe. — 
Lampasas. — Mesa de los Oartujanos. — Products of Nuevo Leon. — Saddle and Mitee 
Mountains. — Monterey 15 



CHAPTER III. 

The American Invasion of To-day. — Monterey as a Health Resort ; its Site and Surroundings. 
— The Cathedral and other Public Buildings. — Capture op Monterey by General Tay- 
lor. — Short History of the Mexican War. — From Corpus Christi to Monterey. — The.^1t- 
tack on the City. — Capture of the Forts and the Bishop's Palace. — Frank Recites a 
Poem. — Lieut. U. S. Grant and What he Did at Monterey. — A Story about Jefferson Davis. 
— How John Phenix Escaped Cashiering. — Sights of the City. — The Market-place and 
What was Seen There. — Fruits, Birds, Pottery, etc. — In a Monterey House. — A Palatial 
Residence 31 



CHAPTER IV. 

Southward to Saltillo. — Santa Cateeina. — Remarkable Caves. — Scenery op the Sierra Madre. 
— Wat-side Attractions. — The Cactus; its Flowers and Many Varieties. — Saltillo. — The 
Alameda. — Mexican Currency. — The Battle-field op Buena Vista. — By Carriage and 
Saddle. — A Night at a Hacienda. — Mexican Cookery. — Tortillas, Puchero, Frijoles, Ta- 
JiALES, AND Other Edibles. — History op the Mexican War from Monterey to Buena Vista. 
—5000 Americans Defeat 20,000 Mexicans. — Description op the Field.— Cotton Factory 
AT Saltillo. — Cotton Manufactures in Mexico 48 



vm CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER V. 

From Saltillo to Jaral. — A Journey by Diligence. — Peculiarities of Diligence Travel. — 
Brigandage ; How the Government Suppressed It. — Robbers Turned into Soldiers. — Sto- 
ries OP Brigands and their Work ; their Treatment of Prisoners. — A Case ok Politeness. 
— Dinner at a Way-side Inn. — Chile con Carne. — Description of Chihuahua. — The Santa 
EuLALiA Mines; Romantic Story of their Discovery. — Torreon and Lerdo. — Cotton in 
Transit. — Statistics of Cotton in Mexico. — Fresnillo. — Calera. — A Bad Breakfast. — Ar- 
rival AT Zacatecas. — Lodged in an Old Convent Pajie 66 



CHAPTER VI. 

Name, Population, and Peculiarities op Zacatecas. — The Pilgrimage Chapel. — A Wealthy 
Cathedral. — Street Scenes. — Mines of Zacatecas. — A Dangerous Descent. — The Patio 
Process of Reducing Ores. — Treading Ore with Mules and Horses. — A Sorry Sight. — 
The Miners ; How they Live and Work. — Statistics of Silver-mining in Mexico. — Astound- 
ing Calculations. — From Zacatecas to Aguas Calientes. — Farm Scenes. — Farming in Mex- 
ico. — Condition of Laborers. — Men as Beasts op Burden. — Aguas Calientes. — A Beautiful 
City. — ^A Picturesque Population. — Women op Mexico 85 



CHAPTER VII. 

Southward Again. — Crossing a Barranca. — Barrancas in Mexico. — Lagos and its Peculiari- 
ties. — Leon, the Manufacturing City of Mexico. — Silao. — Arrival at Guanajuato. — A 
Silver City. — The Valenciano Mine. — An Unhealthy Place. — Bad Drainage. — A System 
OP Reservoirs. — The Castillo del Grenaditas. — An Indian's Armor. — Expers Thieves. — 
Stealing A Grindstone. — Market Scenes. — Heads of Sheep and Goats. — Schools at Guana- 
juato. — Education in Mexico. — Down in the Rayas Mine. — Sights Underground. — An Ind- 
ian Water-carrier. — How a Skin is Taken Whole from a Pig. — The Reduction Hacienda. 
— Mr. Parkman's Machine. — Queretaro. — The Hercules and other Cotton-mills 102 



CHAPTER VIII. 

Aqueduct at Queretaro. — The Result op a Banter. — The Hill of the Bells. — Place where 
Maximilian was Shot. — Revolutions in Mexico. — Foreign Intervention. — Maximilian be- 
comes Emperor. — The "Black Decree." — Withdrawal op French Troops from Mexico. — 
Maximilian's Defeat, Capture, and Death. — How a French Newspaper Circumvented the 
Laws. — Pronunciamentos. — Juarez as Prfsident. — The Abraham Lincoln of Mexico. — A 
Wonderful Prophecy. — Personal Appearance op Juarez. — Religion in Mexico. — Former 
Power of the Catholic Church. — The Laws of the Reform. — Protestant Churches and 
Protestant Work. — Missionary Martyrs. — Murder op Rev. J. L. Stephens. — Religious Af- 
fairs AT Present 116 



CHAPTER IX. 

From Queretaro to the Capital. — Plain of the Cazadero. — Tula. — The Great Spanish Drain- 
age-cut. — Disastrous Inundations of Mexico City. — A Puzzle for Engineers. — Arrival at 
THE Capital. — Hotel Life. — Restaurants and the Mode of Living. — Amusing Stories of 
Hotel Management. — Fondas and Fonditas. — Men for Chamber-maids. — Almuerzo. — A 
Morning Stroll along the Streets. — Women on their Way to Mass. — The Mantilla. — 
Sellers of Sacred Things. — Dealers in Lottery Tickets. — Lotteries Run by Government. 
■ — Attending a Drawing. — How the Affair was Conducted. — Flom-er-sellers 132 



CONTENTS. i2( 

CHAPTER X. 

The Cathedral op Mexico. — Site of the Aztec Teocalli. — Human Sacrifices. — Panorama of 
THE Valley op Mexico. — Extent and Cost of the Cathedral ; Chapels and Altars. — Tomb 
OP Iturbide. — The Career and Tragic End of Iturbide. — The Richest Altar in the World. 
— Golden Candlesticks a Man could not Lift. — The Aztec Calendar-stone ; its Interesting 
Features ; Inscription on the Stone. — Brief Account op the Aztecs. — The Tribe called 
Mexicans. — Aztec Laws and Customs.— Prevalence op the Death Penalty. — Aztec Post- 
ing System. — Picture-writing. — Flower-show in the Zocalo. — A Fashionable Assemblage. 
— Wonderful Work in Feathers .......„., o ..,...,..„,,,„..,... „ Page 147 



CHAPTER XI. 

Lost Arts in Mexico. — Goldsmiths' Work in the Time of Cortez.— Silver Filigree. — Modelling 
IN Wax and Clay. — Native Taste for Music. — National Conservatory op Music. — Museum 
OP Antiquities. — The Sacrificial Stone.— Sacrifices among the Ancient Mexicans.— Glad- 
iatorial Stone. — A Brave Soldier. — Obsidian Knives and Razors. — Aztec Metallurgy. — 
Statue of the God of War. — Shield and Cloak of Montezuma. — Aztec Warfare and Do- 
mestic Life. — Relics op Hidalgo and Maximilian. — Max's State Coach. — National Palace. 
— Hall op the Ambassadors. — Mexican Paintings. — The Monte de Piedad. — An Extensive 
Pawn-shop. — Locking up Men as Security. — Formalities of the Salesroom ... 163 

CHAPTER Xn. 

Mexican Politeness. — Free Gifts op Houses and other Property. — Awkward Mistakes. — An 
Englishwoman's Dilemma, and How She Got Out op It. — Uncle Freddy and the Governor 
OP AcAPULCo. — The Great Market ; Sights and Scenes Thehe. — On the Canal. — Extensive 
Local Commerce. — The Chinampas, or Floating Gardens. — An Excursion on the Lakjes. — 
Santa Anita, a Place op Recreation. — Experts in Diving. — The Hill op Estrella. — The 
Festival op Fire; Prescott's Description of the Fearful Ceremony. — Fishing in the 
Lakes. — The Axolotl. — Fish or Reptile? — Flies' Eggs as an Article of Food 179 



CHAPTER XIII. 

Courtship in Mexico. — "Playing the Bear." — Lovers' Troubles. — A Short Road to Matri- 
mony. — Presents to the Expectant Bride. — The Marriage Ceremony. — Tedious Prelimina- 
ries. — Civil and Religious Marriages. — Differences of Marriage among the Common Peo- 
ple AND THE Upper Classes. — A Hand-book for Lovers. — Funerals ; How they are Man- 
aged. — Cards of Condolence. — Cemeteries. — Monument to American Soldiers. — Annual 
Death-rate in Mexico City. — Prevalent Diseases. — Domestic Servants; Their Number, 
Wages, and Mode op Life. — A Peculiar Laundry System 198 



CHAPTER Xiy. 

Sculpture and Painting in Mexico. — National School of the Fine Arts. — Brief History op 
Mexican Art. — Celebrated Paintings. — "Las Casas Protecting the Aztecs." — "The 
Death of Atala." — How an Artist Managed to Sell a Picture. — From Art to Pulquerias. 
— The National Beverage op Mexico. — The Maguey Plant. — How Pulque is Made. — Col. 

LECTING the SaP. FERMENTING AgUAMIEL. DaILY CONSUMPTION OP PULQUE IN THE CiTY OP 

Mexico. — Management of the Shops. — Romantic History of the Invention op Pulque. 

Mexican Police-courts. — Novel Mode of Trying Cases. — The Belem Prison. — Catalogue 
op Offences Against the Law. — An Adroit Thief. — Running the Gantlet. , 212 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER XV. 

The Paseo de la Reforma. — Brigandage near the City. — Statue of Chahles IV. of Spain. — 
Statue of Columbus. — A Relic of Maximilian. — Aqueducts from Chapultepec. — Monte- 
zuma's Tree. — Chapultepec; its Height and Extent. — Montezuma's Bath. — The Pal- 
ace. — "The Feast of Belshazzar." — National Military College. — Molino del Rey. — 
General Scott's Advance upon Mexico. — Capture of Vera Cruz. — Battle of Cerro 
Gordo. — Entering the Valley. — Contreras and Churubusco. — Fall of Chapultepec. — 
General Scott's Entrance into the City. — Treaty of Peace. — General Grant on the 
Mexican War. Page 229 



CHAPTER XVI. 

The Noche Triste Tree. — A Brief History of the Conquest op Mexico. — Departure of Cortez 
from Cuba. — He Lands in Yucatan. — Founding the City of Vera Cruz. — Defeating the 
Tlascalans. — Entrance to Tenochtitlan. — Reception by Montezuma. — Return to the 
Coast. — Expulsion of the Spaniards. — Besieging the City with the Aid of the Tlasca- 
lans. — Capture of the City, and Death of Guatemozin. — Beginning of the Rule of the 
Viceroys. — The Church of Guadalupe. — Story of the Miraculous Apparition. — Religious 
AND Political Holiday. — Pilgrimage to Guadalupe. — Penitentes; Their Self-inflicted 
Tortures 248 



CHAPTER XVn. 

Area and Inhabitants of Mexico. — Character of the Population. — Indians, Europeans, and 
Mestizos ; Their Respective Numbers and Characteristics. — Inclinations of the Mixed 
Races. — Tendencies of Educated Indians. — President Juarez as an Example. — How the 
Indians Live. — How the Spaniards Took Possession op the Land. — Creoles and their 
Origin. — The Mestizos. — Leperos and their Character. — Adroit Thieves. — Pawning a 
Church Organ. — The Leperos and the Brigands. — Church of San Domingo. — Short His- 
tory OF THE Inquisition in Mexico. — The Auto-da-fe ... 264 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

Ascent op Popocatepetl. — " The White Woman." — Geographical PosmoN of the Volcano. — 
First Ascent by White Men. — Amecameca. — Hiring Horses and Buying Provisions. — 
Equipment for the Excursion. — Dangf.r of Robbers. — Peons and Volcaneros. — Fields of 
Barley and Forests of Pine. — An Indian Tradition. — Fate of the Giant and Giantess. — 
Ice from Popocatepetl for the City of Mexico. — Sulphur from the Crater. — Sleeping at 
Tlamacas. — Arrival at La Cruz. — The Ascent on Foot. — Difficulties of Climbing in the 
Rarefied Air. — The Pico del Fraile.— Caught in a Cloud 279 



CHAPTER XIX. 

The Ascent of Popocatepetl Continued. — Last Steps op the Upward Journey. — Loss of Life 
ON the Mountain. — How Three Indians Perished. — The Crater of the Volcano. — How the 
Sulphur-miners Exist. — Dangers of the Crater. — The Solfataras.— Caught in a Storm. — 
View from the Summit. — Scenes in the Crater. — A Rapid Descent. — Tobogganing on a 
Grand Scale. — How the Sulphur -mine Originated. — No Eruption in Seven Thousand 
Years. — Return to Amecameca. — Exploration of the Surrounding Country. — Tombs and 
their Contents. — Curious Instance of Preservation.— Monte Sacro. — "Modern Antiqui- 
ties."— Indians Worshipping the Volcano. — Experience with a Ratero 296 



CONTENTS. XI 



CHAPTER XX. 

Rapacious Cargadores. — Old Book-stores in the Poetales. — Public Schools in the Mexican 
Capital; the Pupils in Attendance. — Theatres and Hospitals. — A Theatre Supporting a 
Hospital. — The Brothers of Charity. — Inside the Theatres. — A Performance of Opera. — 
A Minor Theatre. — Listening to a Mexican Performanck. — Bull-fighting in Mexico. — A 
Disgraceful Sport. — Origin of the Bull-fight. — Marionette Theatres. — The Processions. 
— Mexican Love for Cock-fighting. — Commingling of Religious Ceremonials and Amuse- 
ments. — The Posada and the Pastorela; their Peculiarities. — Killing Judas.. Page 312 



CHAPTER XXI. 

Excursion to Tula. — An Ancient City of the Toltecs. — Church of the Time of Cortez. — Man- 
ners AND Customs of the Toltecs. — Toltec Kings, Courts, and Knighthood. — Ruins of the 
Temple and Palace. — Journey to Moeelos. — Interoceanic Railway. — Morelos and his 
Services to Mexico. — Cuautla and its Attractions. — Terrible Railway Accident. — Down 
the Southern Slope. — In Tieeea Caliente. — Visiting a Sugar Estate. — To Yautepec and 

CUEENAVACA. RiDE OVER THE MOUNTAINS. — SITUATION OF CuERNAVACA. OlD ChURCH AND 

Palace op Cortez. — A Fortunate Peenchman. — Romantic Incident in the Captuee of 
Cuernataca . 328 



CHAPTER XXII. 

Overland to Acapulco. — Scenes of Long Ago. — Present Mode of Travel. — Ten Days on 
Horseback. — Way-side Accommodations. — Acapulco's Harbor. — Return to the Capital. — 
Excursion to Guadalajara. — Doctoe Beonson Left Behind. — Old Bridges and their His- 
tory.— Battle BETWEEN Hidalgo and the Spaniards. — Stories about Beigands. — Slaugh- 
tee BY Private Enteepeise. — How Senoe Peeez Secueed Peace. — Attractions of Gua- 
dalajara. — The Cathedral and other Churches. — The Great Hospicio. — What the 
Earthquake Did. — Public Schools. — A Day on a Cattle Hacienda. — A Rodeo. — Retuen 
to the Capital 348 



CHAPTER XXIII. 

Interview with President Diaz ; his Personal Appearance and History. — A Checkered Ca- 
eeee. — Saved fbom the Sea. — The Faithful Puesee and his Rewaed. — Characteristics of 
Diaz's Administration. — Madame Diaz. — A Diplomatic Marriage. — The Army and Navy 
of Mexico. — The Postal Service. — Newspapers and other Publications. — Peincipal Weit- 
ers of Fiction. — From Mexico to Puebla. — How the Mexican Railway was Built. — Dif- 
ficulties OF Engineering. — Apizaco. — The City of the Angels ; its Cathedral and other 
Curiosities. — Manufactures of Puebla. — Battle-field of Cinco de Mayo 364 



CHAPTER XXIV. 

Further Sights in Puebla. — Ecclesiastical Buildings. — Schools, Hospitals, Asylums, and 
other Public Institutions. — Cholula and its Great Pyramid. — Fiest Sight of the Pyr- 
amid ; ITS Chaeacter, Size, and Peculiarities. — Ancient Cholula. — Massacee of Inhabi- 
tants by Coetez. — Rumors of Buried Teeasuees. — How a Ceafty Peiest was Foiled. — 
Visit to Tlascala. — The State Legislatuee in Session. — Bannee Carried by Cortez. — 
First Christian Church in America. — Ancient Pulpit and Baptismal Font. — A Revered 
Shrine. — From Tlascala to Apizaco and Onward Towards the Gulf 380 



xii CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER XXV. 

Down the Cpmbres. — A Monster Locomotive. — Maltrata. — El Barranca del Ikfernillo. — In 

THE TiERRA TeMPLADA. PeAK OF OrIZABA ; HoW IT WAS AsCENDED. An OlD AND QCAINT 

Town. — Excursions in the Environs op Orizaba. — Falls of the Rincon Grande. — Man- 
ufacturing Industries— Cerro del Borrego. — The Mexican Army Routed. — Cordoba. — 
How to Run a Coffee Plantation. — Barranca of Metlac. — Paso del Macko. — Tierra 
Caliente. — Dry Lands near the Sea-coast. — Vera Cruz. — Zopilotes and their Uses. — 
Yellow Fever; its Seasons and Peculiarities. — Northers and their Benefits. .Page 394 



CHAPTER XXVI. 

The Alameda of Vera Cruz. — Tropical Growths. — The Palo de Leche and its Peculiarities. 
— A Dangerous Plant. — Fountains and Water-carriers. — Governor's Palace. — Brief 
History of Vera Cruz. — Pillaged by Pirates and Captured in Wars. — Fortress of San 
Juan de Ulloa. — Horrors of a Mexican Prison. — Excursion to Jalapa. — The National 
Bridge. — Cerro Gordo. — General Scott's Victory. — Jalapa. — A City of Mists. — Staple 
Products of the Region. — Jalap and its Qualities. — Pretty Women. — Peculiarities of 
the Streets. — Orizaba and Perote. — New Railway Connections. — Tampico and Anton 
LizAJiDO. — Delayed by a Norther. — Departure by Steamer. — Farewell to Vera Cruz. 410 



CHAPTER XXVII. 

The Coatzacoalcos River. — Isthmus of Tehuantepec. — Tehuantepec Railway and Ship-canal. 
— The Eads Ship-railway. — An Idea of Cortez. — Plans of Captain Eads. — A Railway- 
carriage with 1200 Wheels. — Ships Carried in Tanks. — Engineering and other Features 
OF the Ship-railway. — Mahogany Trade. — Fifteen Thousand Dollars for Three Logs, — 
Frontera and Tabasco. — Ruins of Palenque. — Lorillard City. — Explorations by Ste- 
phens AND Charnay. — Palace of Palenque. — Temple of the Cross. — Temple of Loril- 
lard. — Remarkable Idol. — A Region Abounding in Ruins. — Remains of Mitla. — Pillar 
of Death 423 



CHAPTER XXVIII. 

"The Mysterious City;" Stories and Rumors Concerning it. — Accounts of Stephens and 
Morelet. — Fate of Two Young Americans. — Don Pedro Velasquez. — Carmen and Cam- 
peachy. — Underground Caves. — How Logwood is Gathered ; its Commercial Importance. 
— The Quezal and its Wonderful Plumage. — Snakes and Snake Stories. — Travellers' 
Tales. — Progreso and Sisal. — How the Yucatan Railway was Built. — Agave Sisalana. 
— Discovery and Conquest of Yucatan. — A Ferocious Population. — Rebellious Indians 
IN Yucatan ; How They Treat Visitors. — Towns and Villages Depopulated 439 



CHAPTER XXIX. 

Railway-station at Merida. — Public Conveyances. — The Calesa. — A Ride Through the 
Streets. — When Merida was Founded. — Practical Mode of Designating Streets.— Public 
Buildings. — Casa Municipal. — Dress and Manners of the People. — Indians, Spaniards, 
AND Mestizos. — A City of Pretty Women. — Characteristics of the Maya Race. — The Mes- 
tizo Quarter. — Scenes in the Market. — Breakfasting at a Medio Restaurant. — Euchre 
or Yucca. — Uses of the Yucca Plant.— Gambling in Yucatan. — La Loteria; How it is 
Played. — American Counterpart of the Yucateo Game. — A Popular Assemblage 454 



CONTENTS. xiii 

CHAPTER XXX. 

Pottery and HAMsrocK Markets. — Hammocks in Yucatan; their General Use for Sleeping 
Purposes. — Yucateo Salutations. — An Awkward Situation. — Fashionable, Mestizo, and 
Indian Balls. — Characteristic Indian Dances. — Worship of the Sun Among the Ancient 
. YucATEOs. — Native Music. — Zopilote Dance. — Visit to a Henequin Hacienda. — The Volan 
Coche. — A Vehicle of the Country. — A Race and How it Ended. — Arrival at the Ha- 
cienda. — The Scraping and Baling Machinery. — Starting a Plantation. — Price of the 
Fibre in the Market. — "No Money in the Business." — Fibre-factories in Yucatan. — How 
THE Owners of Estates Live Pase 468 



CHAPTER XXXI, 

First Night in the Hammocks. — Inspecting a Cenot^. — Underground Watercourses and Lakes. 
— How Cenotes are Formed. — A Subterranean Bath-house. — A Noria. — Water Tax on 
A Direct System. — Native Superstitions. — A Lizard That Shakes his Tail Off. — Biting 
A Shadow, and what Comes of it. — Journey to the Ruins of Uzmal. — A Heetzmek. — 
— Yucateo Mode of Carriting Infants. — Breakfast at a Hacienda. — Garden at Uayalke. 
Eating Tropical Lizards. — Fred's Opinion of Lizard Stews. — Bees of the Country. — 
Superfluous Industry of Yucateo Bees. — Evening Prayer at a Hacienda. — Arrival at 
Uxmal 483 



CHAPTER XXXII. 

A Romantic Legend. — How the King was Overcome by the Witch. — Visiting the Dwarf's 
House ; its Position and Peculiarities. — House of the Nuns ; its Extent and Construc- 
tion. — Casa del Gobernador. — Destructive Agencies at Work. — At Home in a Royal 
Palace. — Maya Arches. — Tropical Trees and Plants. — Double-headed Dog op IJxmal. — 
Garapatas and the Annoyance they Caused. — Insect Pests of Yucatan. — Dr. Le Plon- 

GEON AND THE StATUE OF ChAC-MOOL. GhOSTS AND GhOST StORIES. — BiRDS OF YuCATAN. AN 

Ancient Watering-place 498 



CHAPTER XXXIII. 

A Chapter on Archeology. — Number and Extent of the Ruined Cities of Yucatan. — Maya- 
pan, THE Ancient Capital. — Pyramid of Mayapan. — Ake and its Picote. — An Ancient 
Whipping-post. — Pyramids at Ake. — Historical Conundrums. — Kabah and its Mound. — 
Sculpture of a Man on Horseback. — Chichen-itza. — Church, Nunnery, Castle, and Tennis- 
court AT Chichen. — Extent and Character of the Sculptures. — Story of the Conquest 
of Chichen. — Skilful Retreat of the Spanish Captain. — Other Ruined Cities. — Idols of 
CoPAN. — Probabilities of Cities Yet to be Discovered 513 



CHAPTER XXXIV. 

Central America and the Republics Composing it ; a Sketch of their History ; Area and Pop- 
ulation. — Snakes, Lizards, and other Creeping Things. — Costa Rica and its Revolutions. 
— A President who Couldn't Read. — Honduras and its Resources. — Visit to Tegucigalpa. 
— Yuscaran and its Mineral Wealth. — Unfortunate Financiering. — Interesting Social 
Customs. — Interoceanic Canals ; their Present Status. — The Nicaragua Canal ; Surveys, 
Estimates, and Description of the Route ; Probable Advantages to the World's Com- 
merce ; Terms of the Concession ; Estimated Cost, Revenues, and Saving of Distances. 
— Farewell to Mexico. — The End 530 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 



View of Popocatepetl 

Map of Mexico witli its Railways 

Route of the Boy Travellers in Mexico. 



. M-ontispiece. 
.Front Cover. 
.Back Comr. 



A Next-door Neighbor 

The Mexican Frontier 

Scene on the Pennsylvania Railroad. . . 

Street in El Paso 

Bridge over the Mississippi at St. Louis 

The Alamo Mission, San Antonio 

General Sam Houston, Liberator of 
Texas 

"G. T. T." 

Mexico, showing Present and Old Fron- 
tier 

A Group of Texan Hunters 

View in San Antonio, Texas 

On the Banks of the Rio Grande 

Indian Water-carriers 

An old Mexican Chapel by Moonlight . . 

View in Nuevo Laredo 

Watching the Frontier 

Landscape near the Border, . . ? 

A Mexican Muleteer 

A Solid Silver Spur 

A Group of Adobe Houses 

The Land of Maiiana 

The Threshing-floor 

Saddle Mountain, Monterey 

View of the Sierras 

View of Monterey 

The Plaza de Zaragoza 

General Taylor's Attack on Monterey, 
September 21, 1846 

The Bishop's Palace. 

Z. Taylor 

Officers' Uniforms in 1860 



Mountain Scene near Monterey 41 

The Alameda, Monterey 42 

Native Pottery 43 

A Scene in the Market 44 

A Court-yard in Monterey 45 

A Window in Monterey 46 

View of Sierras from Bishop's Palace . . 47 

Santa Caterina, near Monterey 49 

The Organ Cactus 50 

Varieties of Cactus 51 

In the San Juan Valley 52 

A Solid Citizen 53 

On the Road to Buena Vista 55 

A Servant at the Hacienda 56 

Near the Kitchen 57 

Making Tortillas 58 

A Primitive Kitchen 59 

The Guide on the Battle-field 61 

The Battle of Buena Vista 63 

Boll of Mexican Cotton Plant 64 

Picking Cotton 65 

Departure of the Diligence 67 

On the Road 68 

Fight between Brigands and Soldiers. . . 69 

Encampment of Brigands 71 

A King of the Road 72 

Cavalry Pursuing a Band of Robbers. . . 73 

Hotel by the Way-side 75 

Street Scene at Jaral 77 

El Real de Santa Eulalia 78 

The Ravine where the Outcasts Lived. . 79 

On the Edge of the Cotton Field 80 

' ' Cotton is King " 81 



XVI 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 



PAGE 

View in the Mining Eegion 83 

Convent and Fountain 84 

A Silver-producing Valley 86 

Cactus Growths near Zacatecas 87 

Field with Adobe Walls 88 

A Mexican Arastra 89 

Carrying Ore to the Reduction:-works . . 90 

A Mexican Crusher 91 

Bringing Ore from the Mines .93 

Mexican Bellows 94 

Mexican Smelting-furnace 95 

An Old-fashioned Plough 96 

Farm-laborer in a Grass Cloak 97 

Hacienda near the City 98 

Prisoners at Work in the Jail 99 

Of Spanish Blood 100 

Indian Girls at a Spring 101 

A Dry Barranca 103 

Church of San Diego, Guanajuato 104 

Court -yard of a Mexican Tenement- 
house 105 

Superintendent's House at Silver Reduc- 
tion-works 106 

A Ton of Silver 107 

A Mexican Beggar 108 

Old Convent now used as Barracks 109 

A Leading Citizen 110 

Prisoners Breaking Ore Ill 

Sloping Ladders in a Silver-mine 112 

Opening a New Mine 113 

Entrance of a Mine Not in Operation . . 114 

A Cotton Factory, Queretaro 115 

Aqueduct of Queretaro 116 

Queretaro 118 

A Mexican Cavalry Soldier 120 

A Mexican Infantry Soldier 121 

Line of Defence held by Maximilian dur- 
ing the Siege of Queretaro 123 

First Protestant Church in Mexico 125 

Pueblo at Taos, New Mexico 126 

Garden of a Mexican Convent 127 

Interior of the First Methodist Episco- 
pal Church, City of Mexico 128 

Rev. John L. Stephens, a Martyr Mis- 
sionary 129 

In the Cathedral. 130 

Mexican Priests 131 

Comparative Level of Lakes 183 



PACE 

The Great Spanish Drainage-cut 133 

Young Girls of Tula 135 

Environs of Mexico 137 

A Member of the Church Party 139 

Transcontinental Profile of Mexico 140 

Interior Court-yard of a Mexican Hotel 141 

Street View in the Capital 142 

On the Way to Morning Mass 143 

A Modern Street Front 144 

Mexican Lottery Ticket 145 

Flower-girl 146 

The Cathedral, City of Mexico 148 

Moonlight View of Plaza and Cathedral 149 
Augustin de Iturbide, Grandson of the 

Liberator 151 

Granting Absolution in the Cathedral. . 153 

Ready for Mass 154 

Old Spanish Palace in the Calle de Jesus 154 

Church built by Cortez 155 

The Aztec Calendar-stone 156 

Indian Picture-writing 157 

Tenochtitlan, a.b. 1517 158 

First Cavalry Charge by Cortez 158 

A Flower-show in the Zocalo 159 

How the Mantilla is Worn 160 

The Trogon 161 

Near the Plaza 162 

Wax Model of Water-carrier 163 

Ancient Indian Pottery 164 

Mexican House-maid and Chil^Jpi 165 

The Sacrificial Stone 166 

One Form of Sacrificial Stone 167 

Sacrificial Collar 167 

The Form of Sacrifice 168 

Sculptures from Tizoc's Stone 169 

Gladiatoi'ial Stone — from an Aztec Draw- 
ing 170 

Huitzilopochtli, the God of War 171 

The National Palace 173 

Gen. Manuel Gonzales, former President 

of Mexico 174 

Collateral in the Monte de Piedad 175 

To the Pawn-shop 176 

Occasional Patrons of the Monte de Pie- 
dad 177 

A Gift to Fred 179 

"My house and all it contains are yours" 181 
Seeing and Being Seen 182 



ILLUSTKATIONS. 



XVll 



PAGE 

The Market-place, City of Mexico 184 

Interior of a House near the Market-place 185 

Mexican Bird-sellers 186 

View on the Canal 187 

Residence on the Banks of the Canal. . . 188 

Sunday Diversions at Santa Anita 189 

Crew of a Cargo-boat 190 

Chinampas, or Floating Gardens 191 

Peon's House on a Chinampa 192 

Cactus Growths near the Hill of Estrella 193 
Rock Inscriptions made by Ancient Az- 
tecs 194 

Home Scene near the Lake 195 

A Dead Fly 196 

Ruins of a Toltec House 197 

A Fortunate Bear 198 

Mexican Courtship 199 

Code-signalling with the Fan 200 

"There he is" 201 

A Student of "El Secretario" 202 

Mexican Wedding in the Country 203 

Flowers for a Lady 204 

Funeral of General Doblado, Guanajuato 205 
Soldiers' Monument in the American 

Cemetery 207 

Taking Things Easy 209 

A Charcoal Peddler 210 

A Mexican Wash-house 211 

The Landing of Columbus 212 

Mexican Sculpture — Door-way of Church 

of San Jose 213 

Las Casas Protecting the Aztecs 215 

The Death of Atala 217 

A Successful Artist at Woi'k 218 

Maguey Plant 219 

The Tlachiquero 220 

Extracting Aguamiel 222 

A Glass of Aguardiente 223 

"Not caught yet" 224 

A Magistrate '. 225 

An Old Oflfender 226 

Scene of the Capture 328 

A Corner of Chapultepec 229 

Montezuma's Tree 230 

Statue of Columbus on the Paseo de la 

Reforma 231 

San Cosme Aqueduct 233 

Montezuma's Bath 234 



PAGE 

Chapultepec and its Gardens 235 

El Salto del Agua 236 

An Aztec Relic 237 

The Valley of Mexico, from the Ameri- 
can Official Map 239 

View of the Fort of San Juan de Ulloa 

from Vera Cruz 240 

Battle of Cerro Gordo 241 

General Santa Anna 242 

Battle of Churubusco — Charge of the 

"Palmettos" 243 

Storming of Molino del Rey 244 

General Scott's Entrance into Mexico . . 245 

Captured at Chapultepec 246 

A Scene of Peace 247 

The Noche Triste Tree 248 

Departure of Cortez from Cuba 249 

The First Mass in the Temples of Yuca- 
tan 250 

Battle with the Indians 251 

First View of the Mexican Capital 252 

The Meeting of Cortez and Montezuma. 253 

The Battle upon the Causeway •. . . 255 

The Captiu-e of Guatemozin 256 

Ponce de Leon 257 

The Church of Guadalupe 258 

Statuette of the Virgin Mary 259 

Making a Pilgrimage Comfortably 261 

The Penitentes Walking on Cactus-leaves 262 

San Franciscan Mission 263 

Indian of Northern Mexico 264 

A Mestizo Woman 265 

Indian Girl Spinning Cotton 267 

Peddler of Wooden Trays 268 

Cliarcoal Vender 269 

Of the Old Aristocracy 270 

A Creole Residence 271 

Group of Mexican Horsemen 272 

A Society Belle 278 

A Mexican Grandee 274 

A Sermon in the Church 275 

Church of San Domingo 276 

Torture Chamber 277 

Prisoners of the Inquisition 278 

A Residence in the Foot-hills 279 

The Valley of Amecameca 280 

Iztaccihuatl, the White Woman 282 

Along the Trail 284 



XVlll 



ILLUSTKATIONS. 



PAGE 

Dwarf Pines at a High Elevation 285 

The Dome of Popocatepetl from Tlama- 

cas 286 

Mexican Saw-mill 287 

Hacienda of Tomacoco 288 

Volcaneros (Miners) 289 

In the Pine Region 291 

El Pico del Fraile '. 292 

Not a Good Climber 294 

' ' No mountain for me !" 295 

"Hurrah for the top!" 296 

The Crater of Popocatepetl 297 

Bringing Ice from the Mountain 299 

Pack-train from Tlamacas 301 

An Improved Refinery 303 

Looking from the Top of Popocatepetl . 304 

A Dangerous Place 305 

Ruins of Tlalmanalco 307 

Burial-ground of Tenenepanco 308 

Vases Found at Tenenepanco 309 

Caricature of an Aztec Warrior 310 

Ancient Aztec Vases 311 

Wants a Souvenir 312 

Ruins of San Lazero 313 

On the Way to Church 314 

Monks at their Musical Exercise 315 

A Belle of the Opera 316 

A Stage Brigand 317 

Tivoli Garden, San Cosme 319 

Teasing the Bull 320 

Picadores 320 

The Matador's Triumph 320 

The Final Blow 321 

Scenes at a Bull-fight 322 

A Bull-ring of the Highest Class 323 

A School on the Old Model 324 

Figure of Joseph (Procession of the Po- 
sada) 325 

The Railway Judas 327 

Warrior's Profile, found at Tula 329 

Church and Part of Plaza at Tula 330 

Toltec King and his Throne 331 

Ruins of a Toltec Palace 332 

The Pyramid of the Sun at Tula 383 

Parts of a Column, Tula 335 

Toltec Caryatid, Tula 336 

Native Hut on a Sugar Estate 337 

Henequin Plant 338 



PAGE 

Fight between Regulars and Insurgents 339 

Railway Crossing a Barranca 340 

A Product of Cuautla 341 

Travellers Resting 342 

Over the Hills 343 

A Scorpion of Cuernavaca 343 

A Church Going to Decay 344 

Mexican House with Tiled Roof 345 

Climbing the Heights 347 

A Way-side Shrine 348 

On the Road to Acapulco 349 

A Country Hotel 350 

Galleon of the Sixteenth Century 351 

Town and Castle of Acapulco 353 

A Scene on the Diligence Road 354 

An Interior Town 355 

At the Hacienda 356 

A Corner of the Marketplace 357 

Court-yard of a Private House 359 

In the Poor Quarters 360 

Mexicans Planting Corn 361 

A Rodeo 363 

Driving a Herd 363 

President Porfirio Diaz 365 

View in Oajaca 366 

Saved from the Sea 367 

House with Tile Front 369 

American Residents of Mexico 371 

A Military Post 373 

A Country Post-office 373 

Compositor for The Two Republics 374 

Surveying under Difficulties 376 

Ruins of the Covered Way to the Inqui- 
sition 377 

Cathedral of Puebla 378 

Street Scene in Puebla 379 

Part of Puebla 380 

Pyramid of Cholula 383 

View from the Top of the Pyramid 383 

Sport at Cholula 384 

Local Freight Train 385 

A Relic of the Past 386 

Indian Farm Laborers 387 

An Aztec Relic 388 

Interior of an Old Church 389 

First Christian Pulpit in America 390 

Old Baptismal Font, Tlascala 391 

Ancient Bells 392 



ILLUSTEATIONS. 



XIX 



PAGE 

A Native Ploughman 393 

The " Portales," or Covered Walks .... 394 
Map of Railway betvi^een City of Mexico 

and Vera Cruz 395 

Double -ender Locomotive on Mexican 

Railway 397 

View of Orizaba 398 

The River at Orizaba 399 

Hill of El Barrago 401 

Orange Grove in Cordoba 402 

Coffee-drying 403 

Bridge of Attoyac 405 

In Tierra Caliente 406 

Vera Cruz, looking seaward 407 

After the Vomito 409 

A Coffee-carrier 410 

Fountain at Vera Cruz 413 

The Governor's Palace 413 

On the Way to the Fort 414 

The National Bridge. — Robbing a Coach 416 

Sketched at Rinconada , . 417 

Part of Jalapa 418 

A Narrow Street 419 

Exterior of a Church 421 

A Tourist 422 

On the River's Bank 423 

A Steamship on a Platform Car . . 424 

Plane and Elevation of Terminus 425 

Tank Carriage 426 

Section of Part of Cradle Carriage 427 

Map of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec . . . 429 

Mahogany Hunters 430 

Travelling in Tabasco 431 

Plan of Part of the Palace at Paleiique . 433 

Medallion Bass-relief 434 

Idol in Temple at Lorillard City 435 

The Cross of Paleuque 436 

Grand Hall at Mitla 437 

Exterior of Temple at Mitla 438 

In the Forest 439 

John L. Stei^hens 440 

Seeking the Mysterious City 441 

Carapeachy Tobacco 443 

The Quezal 444 

Difficulties of Travel in Campeachy. . . . 445 

Map of Yucatan 447 

Tropical Railway Train and Station .... 448 
Flock of Pelicans 449 



PAGE 

Sisal-hemp 450 

Indians of Yucatan 451 

Retreating from Hostile Indians 453 

In the Outskirts 454 

The Calesa. — Entrance of a Merida 

House 455 

House built by Montejo 457 

Musical Instruments 458 

Municipal Palace and Square, Merida . . 459 

Dancing Scene 460 

Native Village in the Interior 461 

Fruit-sellers in the Market-place 463 

Sitting for her Portrait 464 

In the Market-place 465 

No more " Loteria" 467 

Hammock Lodgings in the Country. . . . 468 

View on a Back Street 469 

Scene in a Ball-room 471 

Indians Dancing 473 

Preparing for the Ball 475 

A Volan Coche 476 

A Street in Merida 477 

A Primitive Sugar-mill 479 

Railway-station in the Henequin District 480 

Storehouse at the Hacienda 481 

A Morning Run 482 

A Corner of the Hacienda 483 

An Underground Walk 484 

Formation of Stalactites 485 

At a Noria 487 

At Home in Merida 489 

Scene of the Heetzmek 490 

Garden of the Hacienda 491 

Native Village near Uxmal 493 

Hunting the Iguana 494 

What Perfumes the Honey 495 

The Sierra from the Garden of the Ha- 
cienda 496 

Side of Ancient Altar 497 

Archway of Las Monjas, Uxmal 498 

Hacienda of Uxmal 499 

Dwarf's House and East Wing of the 

Casa de las Monjas 501 

Fapade of West Wing of Casa de las 

Monjas 503 

Ground-plan of Las Monjas 504 

Casa del Gobernador 505 

Ground-plan of Casa del Gobernador. . . 506 



XX 



ILLUSTRATIONS. 



PAGE 

Statue of Double-headed Dog, Uxmal . . 507 
Decorations over Door- way of Casa del 

Gobernador 509 

An Unwelcome Visitor 510 

Statue of Chac-Mool 511 

Maya Arclies 512 

Yucateo Sculpture 513 

Great Mound at Mayapan ; 514 

Circular Edifice at Mayapan 515 

Sculptured Head of Yucatan 517 

Pillars of Great Gallery, Ake 519 

Head of Incense-burner 530 

Maya Sculpture (Profile) 520 

Ruined Arch at Kabah 521 

Fa9ade of El Castillo ' 522 

Bass-relief, Chichen-Itza 523 

Door-posts in Tennis-court 524 

Casa Colorada 525 

Head of War-god, from COpan 526 

Idol of Copan (from Stephens) 527 

Decoration over Door-way 528 

Map of Central America 529 

In a Central American Forest 530 



PAGE 

Government Palace, San Jose 581 

Central American Lodgings 588 

Banana Plantation in Costa Eica 534 

Don Bernardo de Soto, President of 

Costa Rica 535 

Gen. Luis Bogran, President of Hondu- 
ras , 586 

Tegucigalpa, Capital of Honduras 587 

Street in Yuscaran 538 

Old Bridge at Tegucigalpa 539 

Statue of Morazan, Tegucigalpa 540 

Bird's-eye View of the Nicaragua Canal 541 

Profile of Nicaragua Canal 542 

A Section of the Canal 543 

River San Juan at Toro Rapids 544 

Street in Greytown 545 

El Castillo, San Juan River 546 

View of Lake Nicaragua 547 

Mozo in Full Dress 548 

Fort San Carlos 549 

Native Boats, Lake Nicaragua 550 

Central American Hacienda 551 

Birds of Nicaragua 552 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS 



IN 



MEXICO. 



. CHAPTEE I. 

PREPARATIONS FOR DEPARTURE.— PLANS FOR THE JOURNEY. — TO MEXICO BY 
RAIL. — BACxGAGE, AND BOOKS ON THE COUNTRY. — BRUSHING UP THEIR 
KNOWLEDGE OF SPANISH.— WESTWARD FROM NEW YORK.— A HALT AT ST. 
LOUIS. — SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS.— VISIT TO THE ALAMO. — REMINISCENCES OF 
THE FALL OF THE ALAMO.— BATTLE OF SAN JACINTO AND INDEPENDENCE OF 
TEXAS.— NOTES ON THE RAILWAYS OF NORTHERN MEXICO.— OLD TEXAS AND 
MODERN CHANGES.— " G. T. T."— PRESENT WEALTH OF THE STATE.— ARRIVAL 
ON THE FRONTIER OF MEXICO. 

" T'YE news for yon, Frank !" 
J- "Well, what is it?" 

"We're going to Mexico next 
week," answered Fred ; " at any 
rate, that is uncle's plan, and he 
will tell VLB all about it this even- 
ing." 

" The news is good news," w-as 
the reply ; " for Mexico is one of 
the countries that just now I want 
very much to see. We have heard 
a great deal about it since the rail- 
way was completed to the capital ; 
and then, you know, the Mexicans 
are our neighbors." 

" Th at is true, " said Fred ;" h ere 
we've been going all over the rest 
of the world, and haven't yet called 
on our neighbors, and next-door neighbors too. But we're not alone in 




A NEXT-DOOR NEIGHBOR. 



2 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

this, as it is probable tliat for every inhabitant of the IvTorthern States who 
has visited Mexico, a hundred have been across the Atlantic." 

This conversation occurred between Frank Bassett and Fred Bronson 
shortly after returning from their tour among the islands of the Pacific 
Ocean and through New Zealand, Tasmania, and Australia. The accounts 
of their journeys have appeared in several volumes, with which our readers 
are or should be familiar.* 

The youths Avaited with some impatience until evening, when they 
were to hear from Doctor Bronson the details of the proposed trip. In 
the mean time they devoted themselves to their Spanish grammars and 
dictionaries, which they had not seen for months, owing to their occupa- 
tion with other matters. And we may here add that until their departure 
and while they were on the road, every moment that could be applied to 
the study of the language of the country whither they were bound was 
industriously employed. By the time they crossed the border they were 
able to speak Spanish very w^ell, and had very little need of interpreters. 

"We shall go to Mexico by rail," said the Doctor, " and return by sea ; 
at any rate, that is my plan at present, but circumstances may change it. 
It is my intention to visit the principal cities and other places of interest, 
and also to give some attention to the antiquities of the country and of 
Central America ; exactly what places we shall see I cannot say at this 
moment, nor how long we shall be absent." 

" What shall we need in the way of baggage ?" one of the 3'ouths asked. 

" About what you need for a long journey north and south in the 
United States," was the reply. " You will need clothing for hot weather 
as w^ell as for cold. We shall find it quite chilly in certain jDarts of the 
tierra fria, or highlands, and warm enough in the tierra caliente, or low- 
lands along the coast. You must have outer and under clothing adapted 
to warm and cool climates, and your ulsters may be placed for convenience 
in the same bundle with your linen dusters. Have a good supply of under- 
clothing, as the facilities for laundry-work are not the best, even in the 
large cities; but do not load yourselves with anything not absolutely neces- 
sary, as the Mexican railways allow only thirty-three pounds of baggage to 
a local passenger, and the charges for extra weight are high. Passengers 
with through tickets from the United States are entitled to one hundred 
and fifty pounds of baggage free. 

* "The Boy Travellers in the Far East" (five volumes), and "The Boy Travellers in 
South America," "The Boy Travellers ia the Russian Empire," "The Boy Travellers on 
the Congo," and "The Boy Travellers in Australasia" (four volumes). See complete list 
at the end of this book. 



AUTHORITIES ON MEXICO 




THE MEXICAN FRONTIER. 



"Of course," continued the Doctor, "you 
will want some books on Mexico, partly for 
historical research and partly for descrip- 
tion. There is an excellent guide-book which 
was written by Mr. Janvier, and there is an- 
other by Mr. Conkling ; get them both, and 
also ' Old Mexico and her Lost Provinces,' 
by Mr. Bishop, 'Mexico of To-day,' by Mr. GrifSn, and 'Our ISText-door 
N^eighbor,' by Bishop Haven. Don't forget Charnay's 'Ancient Cities of 
the IS^ew World,' and Prescott's ' Conquest of Mexico.' You can read the 
latter book before we go ; it is inconveniently large for travelling pur- 
poses, and so we will leave it behind us, as we can easily find it in the City 
of Mexico, in case we wish to refer to it again. Abbott's 'Life of Her- 
nando Cortez ' is a more portable . work, and will serve to refresh your 
memory concerning what you read in Prescott's volumes." 

The conversation lasted an hour or more, and by the time it ended the 
boys almost felt that they were already in the land of the Aztecs. Their 
dreams through the night were of ancient temples and modern palaces, 
Aztec and Spanish warriors, snowy mountains and palm-covered plains, 
mines of silver and other metals, fortresses, cathedrals, haciendas and hov- 
els, and of many races and tribes of men that dwell in the land they were 
about to see. Fred declared in the morning that he had dreamed of Mon- 
tezuma and Maximilian walking arm in arm, and Frank professed to have 
had a similar vision concerning Cortez and General Scott. 

For the next few days the youths had no spare time on their hands, 
and when the start was made for the proposed journey they were well 
prepared for it both mentally and materially. They had followed Doctor 



4 THE BOY TRAVELLERS m MEXICO. 

Bronson's directions as to their outfit of clothing and other things, had 
procured the books which he named, and, as we have ah-eady seen, had 
made a vigorous overliauling of their Spanisli grammars and phrase-books. 
From New York there are several routes westward, as our readers are 
pretty well aware, and the youths were a little puzzled to know which one 




SCENE ON THE PENNSYLVANIA RAILROAD. 



would be chosen. The mystery was solved by the Doctor on the day 
before their departure. He announced that they would go to St. Louis 
by the Pennsylvania Kailroad, and from there to the frontier of Mexico by 
the Missouri Pacific and Southern Pacific lines. "And now," said he, " I 



ON THE WAY TO THE SOUTH-WEST. 




STREET IN EL PASO. 



will leave you to choose the route to the capital city, and you need not 
decide until we reach St. Louis." 

The Doctor's suggestion compelled a study of the maps and a careful 
reading of the guide-books and other literature pertaining to the journey. 
The result of their study may be summed up as follows from an entry 
which Frank made in his note-book : 

" The first railway which was opened from the United States to the 
City of Mexico was the Mexican Central, which runs from El Paso, Texas, 
or rather from Paso del Norte, Mexico, which is opposite to El Paso, on 
the other side of the Eio Grande. Its length is 1224 miles, and it was 
completed March 8, 1884-, at the station of Fresnillo, 750 miles from Paso 



6 • THE BOY TKAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

del Norte, the line having been built from both ends at the same time. 
Three years and six months were required for its construction, and the 
line is said to have cost more than thirty-two millions of dollars; eight 
miles of track were laid during the last day of tlie work before the two 
ends of the line were brought together ; and considering all the disadvan- 
tages of the enterprise, it reflects great credit upon those who managed it. 

" For more than four years the Mexican Central was the only all-rail 
route for travellers from the United States to the City of Mexico, and it 
had a practical monopoly of business. In 1888 two other lines were 
opened ; or perhaps we might say, another line and half of a third. These 
are the Mexican National Railway, from Laredo, Texas, to Mexico City, a 
distance of 825 miles, and the International Railway, from Piedras Negras, 
Mexico, opposite Eagle Pass, Texas, to a point on the Mexican Central, 
about half-way between El Paso and Mexico. The International is the 
one which we call half a line, as it makes a new route into Mexico, and 
from all we can learn a very good one too. 

" The Central is a standard-gauge road, four feet eight and one-half 
inches wide, while the National is a narrow-gauge line, three feet between 
the rails ; the advantage of the National line is that it is much shorter than 
the Central, as I will proceed to show. 

" From St. Louis to Mexico City, by way of Laredo, the distance is 
1823 miles, while by the Central line it is 2584 miles ; there is thus a sav- 
ing of 761 miles, or about thirty hours in time. But the Central will take 
us through five or six interesting cities, while the National only goes near 
Monterey, San Luis Potosi, and Toluca. 

" Fred and I have decided to ask uncle to go by neither one route nor 
the other, but to travel by both of them, and the International line in 
addition ; and this is the way we propose to do it : 

" We'll go from St. Louis to Laredo because of the saving of time and 
distance, and then we'll go to Monterey, which is an interesting city, by 
the National Railway. After we've done Monterey we'll go farther on, to 
Saltillo, and there we can cross over to Jaral, about forty miles, and find 
ourselves on the main line of the International Railway. There the train 
will pick us up and carry us to Torreon, on the Mexican Central Railway, 
and from there we can continue to the capital, seeing the best part of the 
Central line, or rather of the country through whicli it runs. The north- 
ern part of the route of the Central is said to be dreary and uninteresting, 
and so we shall be able to avoid it by the plan we have made." 

The scheme was duly unfolded to the Doctor, who promptly gave his 
approval and commended the youths for the careful study they had made 



FIRST GLIMPSE OF MEXICAN LIFE. 




BRIDGE OVER THE MISSISSIPPI AT ST. LOUIS. 



of the railway sys- 
tem of northern 
Mexico. "Later 
on," said he, " we 
will consider the 
subject of railways 
in other parts of Mexico, and I'm snre 
you will be able to make some inter- 
esting notes about it for your friends 

at home. Mexico was for a long time very backward in railway enter- 
prises, but in the past few years she has gone ahead very rapidly. Ten 
years ago there were not live hundred miles of railway in the country ; 
now there are nearly, if not quite, five thousand miles, and in ten years 
from this time there will be double that number. The Mexico of to-day 
is very different from the Mexico of a quarter of a century ago." 

Our friends stopped a day in St. Louis, and another at San Antonio, 
Texas, partly for sight-seeing purposes and partly for rest. At the former 
city the great bridge over the Mississippi excited the wonder and admira- 
tion of the youths, who heard with much interest the story of its construc- 
tion and the difficulties which the engineers encountered in laying the 
foundations. At San Antonio they had their first glimpse of Mexican life, 
as the city is quite Mexican in character, and at one time was almost 
wholly so. Doctor Bronson told them that about one-third of the inhabi- 
tants are of Mexican origin, and they could easily believe it as they saw 
the Mexican features all about them on the streets, and heard the Spanish 
language quite as often as any other. 



8 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



The object of greatest interest to them was the Alamo, the old fort 
which, in 1836, the Texans, who were fighting for independence, so lie- 
roically but unsuccessfully defended. They were disappointed to find 
that there is not much remaining of the fort, which originally consisted of 
an oblong enclosure, about an acre in extent, with walls three feet thick, 
and eight or ten feet high. " There were 144 men in the Alamo, and they 
were besieged by 4000 Mexican troops under General Santa Anna," said 
a gentleman who accompanied them to the spot. " The Mexicans had ar- 
tillery, and the Texans had none, and against such odds it was hopeless to 
resist. Santa Anna sent a summons for them to surrender, and throw 
themselves upon Mexican mercy, but they refused to do so, and defied him 
and his army." 

As he paused a moment, Fred asked why they refused to surrender 
when the odds were so much against them. 

" They knew what Mexican mercy was," said the gentleman. " It was 
illustrated not long afterwards at Goliad, where Colonel Fannin surren- 
dered with 412 men as prisoners of war. They were promised to be re- 
leased under the rules of war, and one Sunday morning, when they were 
singing ' Home, sweet home,' they were marched out and massacred, every 




THE ALAMO MISSION, SAN ANTONIO. 



man of them. The slaughter lasted from six till eight, and then the bodies 
of the slain were burned by orders of the general. It is proper to say that 
the Mexican officers were generally disgusted with the terrible business, 
but they were obliged to obey the orders of Santa Anna, or be themselves 



SIEGE OF THE ALAMO. 



9 



shot down. His policy was one of extermination, and he could have 
said on his death-bed that he left no enemies behind him, as he had killed 
them all. 

" Well," continued their informant, " the siege of the Alamo began on 
the 23d of February, 1836, and lasted for thirteen days. Over 200 shells 




GEN. SAM HOUSTON, THE LIBERATOR OP TEXAS. 



were thrown into the fort in the first twenty-four hours, but not a man 
was injured by them, while the Texan sharp-shooters picked off a great 
number of the Mexicans. Santa Anna made several assaults, but was 
driven back each time, and it is believed that he lost fully 1500 men in 
the siege. On the morning of the 6th of March a final assault was made, 
and the fort was captured ; every man was killed in the fighting except- 



10 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

ing six who surrendered, and among the six was the famous Col. David 
Crockett. Santa Anna ordered all of them to be cut to pieces, and Crock- 
ett fell with a dozen sword-wounds after his own weapons had been given 
up. Colonel Travis,, who commanded the fort, was also killed, and so was 
Colonel Bowie, who was ill in bed at the time, and was shot where he lay. 
He was the inventor of the bowie-knife, which has been famous through 
the West and South-west for a good many years. Only three persons were 
spared from death, a woman, a child, and a servant." 

" How long was that before the battle of San Jacinto ?" one of the 
youths asked. 

"Less than seven weeks," was the reply, "and never was there a more 
complete victory than at that battle. Gen. Sam Houston retreated slow- 
ly, and was followed by the Mexican army. He burned a bridge behind 
his enemies, and suddenly attacking them on the afternoon of April 21st, 
he killed half their number and captured nearly all the rest. The war- 
cry of the Texans was ' Remember the Alamo ! remember Goliad !' and 
maddened by the recollection of the cruelties of the Mexicans, they fought 
like tigers, and carried everything before them. Santa Anna, disguised 
as a soldier, was captured the next day ; Houston had hard work to save 
him from the fury of the Texans, but he was saved, and lived to fight 
again ten years later. But the battle of San Jacinto ended the war, and 
made Texas independent of Mexico." 

A ride of a hundred and fifty miles to the south-west from San An- 
tonio brought our friends to Laredo, on the banks of the Rio Grande, the 
dividing line between the United States and Mexico. The ride was 
through a thinly settled country, devoted principally to grazing, and there 
were few objects of interest along the route. The time was varied with 
looking from the windows of the car, with the perusal of books, and by 
conversation concerning the Texan war for independence, to which the 
thoughts of the party had naturally turned through their visit to the 
Alamo at San Antonio. 

" Texas was a province of Mexico," said the Doctor, " in the early part 
of the present century, the Spaniards having established missions and sta- 
tions there at the same time that the French established missions and mili- 
tary posts in Louisiana. The territorial boundaries between France and 
Spain were never very clearly defined ; the two countries were in a con- 
stant quarrel about their rights, and when we purchased the Louisiana ter- 
ritory from France we inherited the dispute about the boundaries. Ad- 
venturers from various parts of the United States poured into the country, 
and the population was more American than Mexican ; there were many 



"GONE TO TEXAS." 



11 



respectable men among tlie American settlers, but there was also a consid- 
erable proportion of what might be called ' a bad lot.' " 

" I have read somewhere," said Frank, " a couplet which is said to 
have been composed by a resident of the country fifty years ago, and to 
have given the State its name. 

"'When every other land rejects us, 
This is the land that freely takes us.'" 

"And I," said Fred, "have read somewhere that when a man ran away 
to cheat his creditors, or for any more sei'ious reason, it was commonly 
said that he had 'gone to Texas.' When the sheriffs looked for somebody 
whom they wished to arrest and were 
unable to find him, they indorsed the 
warrant with the initial letters ' G. T. 
T.' before returning it to the authori- 
ties who issued it. Sometimes an ab- 
sconding debtor saved his friends the 
trouble of looking for him by leaving 
on his door a card bearing these inter- 
esting letters." 

" Undoubtedly," continued the Doc- 
tor, "there was a rough population in 
Texas in those days, but the men com- 
posing it were not deficient in bravery, 
and they had the spirit of independence 
in the fullest degree. While the United 
States and Mexico were disputing about 
the boundaries, the Texans set up a claim 
for independence, and the war which was 
ended by the battle of San Jacinto was "g- i'- t." 

like our Revolutionary War a hundred 

and more years ago. After Texas had secured her independence, she set 
up a government of her own ; she had a president and all the other officials 
pertaining to a republic, and was recognized by England, France, and other 
European countries. This did not last long, as her finances fell into a de- 
plorable condition, and the preponderance of Americans among the popu- 
lation naturally led to a movement for annexation to the United States^ 
Annexation was followed by war with Mexico, and it grew out of the old 
dispute about the boundaries. Mexico claimed all land west of the IS^ueces 
River, while Texas claimed to own as far wxst as the Rio Grande. Each 




12 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



country believed it was right, and our war witli Mexico resulted in the 
defeat of the Mexican armies, the occupation of their capital, and the 
establishment of the right of the United States to all territory east of the 
Rio Grande." 

" Texas is therefore one of the lost provinces of Mexico," said Frank. 




" Yes," was the reply ; " it is one of them, and a very large one, as it 
has an area of nearly three hundred thousand square miles, and is a coun- 
try of great future possibilities. But Texas was by no means the greatest 
of the losses of Mexico by the war, as California, I^evada, Utah, Arizona, 
and ISTew Mexico were taken by us as compensation for our trouble, and 
you know what they are to-day. About the time that the treaty of peace 
was signed and the cession of territory made, gold was discovered in Cali- 
fornia, and the wonderful wealth of the Pacific coast and the Rocky Mount- 
ain region was rapidly developed. Look on the map in Mr. Bishop's book 
and see M'hat Mexico was before and after the war." 

The boys made a careful inspection of the map, and as it will be inter- 
esting to their friends at home, we here reproduce it. 

" The Mexicans were severely punished for their cruelty to the Tex- 



THE MASSACRE AT GOLIAD. 



13 




A GROUP OF TEXAN HUNTERS. 



ans," said Fred, "and were probably sorry for their butcheries at Goliad 
and the Alamo when they sat down to think of the war and how it turned 
out. 

" Tlie responsibility for those butcheries rests rather upon General 
Santa Anna than on the officers and soldiers who executed his orders. He 
started out in a war of extermination, and there is abundant evidence that 
his officers loathed the work they had to perform. One of them, writing 
from Goliad at the time of the massacre of Colonel Fannin and his men, 
said, 'This day, Palm Sunday, has been to me a day of heart-felt sorrow. 
What an awful scene did the field present when the prisoners were exe- 
cuted and fell in heaps, and what spectator could view it without horror !' 
It has been said that the feeble resistance that Santa Anna's men made at 
the battle of San Jacinto was in consequence of the willingness of officers 



14 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



and soldiers to be captured so that the terrible war could come to an 
end." 

"Texas is now a very prosperous State," continued the Doctor; "the 
value. of its taxable property is nearly seven hundred millions of dollars, 
and some authorities say it is more, and it has seven millions of cattle, ten 
millions of sheep, and horses and mules in proportion. By the census of 
1880 it had a population of more than one and a half millions, and it is 
probable that 1890 will give it more than two millions. Its area would 
make five States as large as New York, thirty-three as large as Massachu- 
setts, and two hundred and twelve of the size of Khode Island. That it 
has changed greatly from the days before the annexation, and is favorable 
to peace and good order, is shown by its liberal appropriation for schools, 
its laws relative to the sale of intoxicating drinks, the fines it imposes for 
carrying pistols and bowie-knives, and its penalties for using them." 

There was further conversation about the south-west and its peculiari- 
ties, when the train reached the frontier and attention was turned to Mex- 
ico and the new land that they were about to visit. 




TIEW IN SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS. 



OVER THE BOKDEE. 



15 



CHAPTER II. 

HOTELS ON THE FRONTIER.— ACCOMMODATIONS AT LAREDO.— SMUGGLING OVER 
THE BORDER.— LAREDO AS A RAILWAY CENTRE.— THE RIO GRANDE AND ITS 
PECULIARITIES.— RIVERS BENEATH THE SANDS.— ENTERING MEXICAN TERRI- 
TORY.— EXAMINATIONS AT THE CUSTOM-HOUSE.— MEXICAN TARIFFS.— BRIBERY 
AMONG OFFICIALS.— LEAVING NUEVO LAREDO.— A DREARY PLAIN.— FELLOW- 
PASSENGERS WITH OUR FRIENDS.— A MEXICAN IRISHMAN.— PEOPLE AT THE 
STATIONS.— ADOBE HOUSES; HOW THEY ARE MADE.— THE LAND OF MANANA. 
—POCO TIEMPO AND QUIEN SABE.—LSMYM$>hS>.—MESA DE LOS CARTTT- 
/^iV"05'.— PRODUCTS OF NUEVO LEON.— SADDLE AND MITRE MOUNTAINS.— MON- 
TEREY. 

TT was nine o'clock in the evening when the train reached Laredo from 
■^ San Antonio, and our friends found that they would have to pass the 
night in the town. They had been recommended to patronize the Com- 
mercial Hotel ; their informant said he could not speak loudly in its 




ON THE BANKS OF THE KIO GRANDE. 



praise. " It is the least bad of the hotels in the place," said he, " and a 
great deal better than sleeping on the ground in the open air, as you would 
have been obliged to do here only a few years ago. In the language of 
the far "West, it beats nothing all out of sight." 



16 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

There was a sign of civilization in the shape of an omnibus, rather a 
rickety and weak-springed affair, it is true, but still an omnibus, and it car- 
ried them safely to the hotel, whither their baggage followed in a wagon. 
The crowd around the station when the train arrived was a mixture of 
American and Mexican, with a few Indians by way of variety. The pop- 
ulation of the frontier is quite a puzzle to the ethnologist at times, and 
the work of classification is by no means easy. Some of the patrons of 
the hotel were Mexicans of the better sort, and they mingled freely with 
the Americans who had lived long enough in Texas to feel at home. The 
Texas towns along the border contain a goodly number of residents who 
are engaged in defrauding the revenue of Mexico by engaging in the busi- 
ness of smuggling goods into that country ; there is also a fair amount of 
smuggling from Mexico into the United States, and the customs ofiicials 
on both sides are kept reasonably busy in seeing that the rights of their 
respective nations are defended. The peculiarity of revenue laws all the 
world over is that every country considers it quite proper to violate those 
of any other, but is very indignant if its own regulations are not re- 
spected. 

Supper at the hotel was endurable by hungry travellers, hut would 
have failed to meet the desires of the epicure ; and the same may be said 
of breakfast on the following morning. As the train for Mexico started 
at eight o'clock,* there was not much time for sight-seeing after breakfast, 
though sufficient to discover that Laredo was a comparativel}'" new town, 
whose existence was mainly due to the railways that lead to it. There 
was a town there in the early days of the Spanish colonization, but it was 
completely destroyed in the frontier troubles, and the site was deserted 
until Texas became one of the United States. The International and Great 
Northern Railway runs to San Antonio and beyond : one division of the 
Mexican National Railway, known as the Texas-Mexican, connects Laredo 
with Corpus Christi, on the Gulf of Mexico, 160 miles away; and the 
next, called the Northern Division, unites it with the City of Mexico. 
Other railways are projected, and those who have corner or other lots in 
Laredo predict a great future for the city. 

The Rio Grande is not an imposing river at Laredo, and our young 

* Since the Boy Travellers made their journey through Mexico the time-table of the 
Mexican National Eailway has been changed. The express train leaves Laredo at 6.35 
P.M., and Nuevo Laredo at 8.20. Monterey is reached at 2.40 a.m., and Saltillo, where 
passengers take breakfast, at 6.20. They dine at Catorce, sup at San Lnis Potosi, and 
reach the City of Mexico at 9.50 on the second morning after their departure from the 
Rio Grande. 



A DISAPPOINTMENT. 



IT 




INDIAN WATER-CARRIERS. 



friends were disappointed when they saw it. They had looked for a stream 
of magnitude, as implied by the name, and were not prepared for one that 
could be forded without much danger, and was so diminutive as to remind 
them of those rivers of the Western States where it is necessary to use a 
sprinkling-pot at certain seasons of the year to let strangers know where 



18 THE BOY TKAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

the stream is. The Doctor told them that the Rio Grande was known as 
tlie Eio Bravo in the lower jiart of its course, and Frank suggested that 
it was because the river was very brave to come so far with such poor 
encouragement. 

"But the stream which now looks so insignificant," Doctor Bronson ex- 
plained, " is subject to periodical floods, owing to the melting of the snows 
in the mountains where it takes its rise. They begin in April, reach their 
greatest height in May, and subside in June, and while they last they fill 
the whole bed of the stream, and overflow the banks wherever they are 
low. Some of its tributaries at such times are roaring floods, while ordi- 
narily they are only dry beds, where not a drop of w^ater can be seen for 
many miles. But if you dig a few feet into the sandy bed of these streams 
you will find water ; emigrants travelling through this country carry an 
empty barrel from which both heads are removed, and by sinking this bar- 
rel into the sand they obtain a plentiful supply of water. A knowledge 
of this fact has saved many lives, and ignorance of it has caused deaths by 
thirst when suffering might easily have been avoided." 

The first bridge erected b}'' the railway company at Laredo was of 
wood ; it served its purpose until the first flood, when it was torn from its 
foundations and carried away. The present bridge is a substantial one of 
iron, and promises to last a long time. 

From Laredo the train moved slowly across the river, along a bridge 
whose height was intended to make it secure against the severest floods, 
until it reached the station of l^uevo Laredo, on the Mexican side, two or 
three miles from Texan Laredo. Here there was an examination of bag- 
gage by the Mexican customs officials ; they were polite, and our friends 
had learned from long experience in custom-houses to be polite in return. 
The result was that the examination of their belongings was very slight, 
while that of some of the passengers who displayed ill manners was nmch 
more severe. The Doctor and the youths produced the keys of their 
trunks and opened them before being asked to do so, and promptly an- 
nounced the contents of the receptacles. They had notliing dutiable, and 
in a very few minutes the ordeal was ended. 

Frank made the following note about the Mexican custom-house : 

" Mexico is a land of high tariffs, and pretty nearly everything that 
can be imported is taxed. Machinery was formerly imported free, but it 
is now subject to duty, and so is almost everything except agricultural and 
scientific instruments and books. There is- also a duty on packages apart 
from their contents, and there is a heavy duty on all kinds of carriages. 
Baggage for personal use is admitted free of duty, unless there is reason 



THE MEXICAN CUSTOM-HOUSE. 



19 



to suspect tliat the owner Las an intention to sell ; two or three suits of 
clothing will pass without question, but ten or twelve would be liable to 
detention and duty. The laws require that the examination of bag- 
gage shall be conducted ' liberally, and with prudence and moderation,' 
and certainly we have no occasion to complain of discourtesy. In addi- 
tion to clothing ' not excessive in quantity,' a traveller may have two 
watches with their chains, a cane, an umbrella, one or two pistols with 
equipments and cartridges, one hundred cigars, forty small packages of 
cigarettes, a rifle or fowling-piece, one pound of smoking tobacco or snuff, 
and any musical instruments in actual use except pianos and organs. When 




AN OLD MEXICAN CHAPEL BY MOONLIGHT. 



a resident of the United States crosses the E,io Grande into Mexican ter- 
ritory with his own carriage he must pay the duties on the vehicle, or 
give a bond for their payment in case he does not return to the United 
States. 

" As the relations of the United States and Mexico increase in intima- 
cy, it is probable that there will be a reciprocity treaty ; negotiations to 
that end have been going on for some time, but are delayed by the usual 
' hitches ' that arise in such matters. At the entrance of Mexican cities 
there is an examination something like the octroi of European cities, but 
so far as tourists are concerned it is very slight. They merely declare 



20 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



that they have nothing dutiable, and are allowed to pass on. There is an 
examination on leaving Mexico, as there is an export duty of five per cent, 
on bullion, and a prohibition against taking antiquities from the country. 
As a matter of fact, a good many antiquities are carried away, but as the 
greater part of them are fictitious the restriction is not rigidly enforced. 




VIEW IN NUETO LAREDO. 



" We have heard several stories about how the Mexican custom-house 
is defrauded by tlie bribery of officials, but have no means of knowing if 
they are true or false. Certainly we did not offer any money to the men 
at the custom-house, and none of them intimated that he desired to be 
bribed. If a quarter of the stories have any truth at all, there must be a 
great deal of dishonesty along the frontier, but it is not confined to the 
Mexicans. 

" Pack-trains loaded with dutiable goods start openly from the fron- 
tier towns of Texas, ford the river, and make their way into the interior 
of Mexico. The trade is so large that it could hardly be carried on 
without official connivance. The author of 'Mexico of To-day' says in 
regard to this subject: 'Those well informed Avith regard to trade inter- 
ests agree that a m-eat deal of smuefflino- exists, owino' to the hio;h tariff 
and the great frontier stretch that invites law-breakers. It is said that 



MEXICO FROM A PAELOK-CAR. 



21 



millions more of American goods find their way into Mexico than show 
in. the statistics prepared by either Government,' 

" Another writer says : ' The traveller is permitted to enter all his 
personal apparel free of duty; in fact everything that he really needs. 
A great many things he does not need may be taken in also, for the 
official's pay is meagre and he loves to gaze on the portraits of Amer- 
ican worthies as depicted on our national currency. It is well to caution 
the traveller that he must, if requested, state to the proper authorities 
his name and profession.' " 

In due time the train rolled out of Kuevo Laredo, and our friends 
were contemplating the scenery of northern Mexico. For the first fifty 
or sixty miles there was not much to 
contemplate, as the country consists 
of a plain covered with chaparral, and 
one mile of it is very much like any 
other. "A little of it goes a great 
ways," said Frank to Fred ; and after 
a brief study of th6 cactus and mes- 
quite landscape, the youths turned to 
their books or to observations upon the 
train and the passengers accompany- 
ing them. 

As stated elsewhere, the iJ^ational 
Railway is of three feet gauge, and 
therefore it was to be expected that 
the cars would be narrow and possibly 
inconvenient. But our friends found 
them roomy and comfortable ; there 
was a parlor-car with reclining-chairs, 
for which an extra price was charged, 
and sleeping-cars all the way from 
Laredo to the City of Mexico, just as 
sleeping-cars are run on other lines. 

The passengers included several tourists like themselves, a few railway 
agents, some mysterious characters who could not be " placed," and six or 
eight men of business who cared nothing for scenery, politics, or anything 
else pertaining to Mexico, except the facilities for commerce and the 
duties upon imported goods. One of these individuals loudly denounced 
the protective duties in the Mexican tariff system, and declared that the 
country would never amount to anything until it abolished its restrictions 




WATCHING THE FRONTIEK, 



22 



THE BOY TKAVELLEES IN MEXICO. 



upon importations and opened its markets to the world. In the discus- 
sion that followed, the fact was revealed that he was a citizen of the 
United States, and interested in manufactures ; concerning the tariff 
system of his own country, he favored protection, as it encouraged 
American industries and was the only system under w^hich the people 
who worked with their hands could make a living. Frank wanted to 




LANDSCAPE NEAR THE BORDER. 



ask him why he favored one system for Mexico and another for the 
United States, but he modestly refrained from so doing ; another passen- 
ger asked the question, but it remained unanswered ; and to this day the 
youth has not been enlightened on the subject. 

Among the passengers were several Mexicans, whose nationality was 
readily shown by their swarthy complexions and the peculiarities of their 
dress. They wore the sombrero, or wide-brimmed hat of the country, but 
it may here be remarked that of late years the American hat has come 
somewhat into fashion and is less unpopular than of yore. Some of them 
proved to be naturalized Mexicans rather than native born ; one in par- 
ticular was a jolly Irishman Avho had been thirty years in Mexico, spoke 
its language fluently, and had been so browned by the sun that his com- 
plexion was fully up to the national standard. He joined Doctor Bron- 
son and the youths in conversation, and cordially invited them to make a 
break in their journey and visit his hacienda. 

He had a Mexican wife, and was the owner of a large area of land, 
on which he had so many cattle that he Avas unable to give their num- 
ber within two or three hundred. He said he came from Ireland to 



DRESS OF A HACIENDADO. 



23 




the United States, drifted down to the frontier of Mexico just before 
the American Civil War, and in order to avoid being mixed up in the 
troubles, he crossed the boundary and sought shelter under a neutral flag. 
There he had remained and prospered 
to such an extent that he had no wish 
to return either to the United States 
or his native land. 

Fred made note of the dress of a 
haciendado, or ranch-owner, who was 
seated near him and might fairly be 
taken as the type of the dandy horse- 
man of Mexico. The man wore a 
suit of dark blue or blue-black cloth, 
the suit consisting of two garments, 
a jacket and trousers. The jacket 
was short and well fitted, and it was 
ornamented with large buttons of sil- 
ver; the trousers were close-fitting, 
and on the outer seams were rows 
of silver buttons smaller than those 
that decorated the jacket. The feet 
were incased in top-boots with high 

heels, and each boot carried a large spur of solid silver; the spur is a 
cruel weapon, with long rowels upon wheels as large as a half-dollar. The 

man's jacket was open in front, display- 
ing a frilled or ruffled shirt, white as 
snow, and connected to the trousers at 
the waist by 2ifaja, or sash, whose pre- 
dominating color was red. The Mexi- 
cans are fond of gaudy colors, and the 
taste for them runs through all classes 
of the population. Though it was not 
worn in the railway-train, we must not 
forget the serape, or Mexican blanket, 
which is carried over the shoulders or 
on the arm, or in the case of a mounted 
A SOLID SILVER SPUR. horscmau, is thrown across the front of 

the saddle. 
The sombrero of this haciendado was of a light gray color ; the head- 
covering may be of almost any color under the sun, but the preference is 



MEXICAN MULETEER. 




24 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

nearly always for something bright. The crown may be rounded off 
like the large end of an egg, or form a truncated cone, like the crown of 
the hat worn by the Puritans, and it is encircled by three or four turns of 
silver or gold cord. Gold or silver trimming around the brim completes 
the ornamentation; altogether there is considerable weight to the Mexi- 
can sombrero, but nobody seems to mind it. 

At the stations where the train halted from time to time, the travel- 
lers obtained glimpses of men and things peculiar to the country. Horse- 
men were in goodly proportion, as no Mexican who can afford a horse 
will be without one ; and sometimes when he cannot afford it, he manages 
to possess the steed of his desires by the simple process of stealing it. 
Wagons and pack-trains were not infrequent ; and one of the picturesque 
spectacles in connection with them was the muleteers, or mule-drivers, 
who were almost invariably barefooted, wore but little clothing, and car- 
ried the ropes and other apparatus needed for their professions in bags 
slung over their shoulders or hung at their sides. Some of the stations 
were frail buildings of wood, while others were of the adobe, or sun-dried 
brick, the favorite construction material of Mexico and the countries that 
once belonged to her. - 

Fred was interested in the adobe, and learned on inquiry that its use 
is a matter of great antiquity. The Mexican Indians made sun-dried 
bricks long before Columbus discovered America, and it should be borne 
in mind that some of the pyramids of Egypt, which have stood for thou- 
sands of years, were of the same material. The bricks that the Egyptians 
compelled the Israelites to make without straw were dried in the sun, and 
therefore identical with the Mexican adobe. 

Fred asked his Irish-Mexican acquaintance how an adobe house was 
made, and the gentleman kindly explained. 

" An adobe house," said he, " costs very little, and it is warmer in 
winter and cooler in summer than either wood or brick. It will last as 
long as anybody can want it to. I know some adobe houses that are said 
to be a hundred years old, and many that have stood twenty or thirty 
years without any sign of decaying. 

" Adobe bricks are made of one-third clay-dust and two-thirds fine 
sand, and it takes four men to form a brick-making team. One mixes 
the mass with a little water so as to form it into a heavy mortar, two 
men carry it in a hand-barrow to the place where the bricks are to be 
spread out and dried, and the fourth man shapes the bricks in the mould. 
After drying somewhat while flat on the ground, which has been pre- 
viously levelled and made smooth as a floor, the adobes are set up edge- 



ADOBE AND MANANA. 



25 



wise, and stay so until the sun finishes them completely. Tliey are laid in 
mortar made from mud ; and when a wall is two feet high, the work stops 
for a week, to allow the mortar to be firmly set before putting more press- 
ure on it. When a week has passed, another height of two feet may be 
laid, and so the work goes on until the building is finished. Then it must 
wait a week before the roof is put on. You see, it takes time for building 
an adobe house ; but time is of no consequence in the land of mananar 

"What is the meaning of manana?" one of the youths asked. 

" It means ' to-morrow,' " was the reply ; " and as you go through 
Mexico you will hear the word in constant use. Ask a Mexican when he 
will do anything — pay a bill, return the horse he borrowed, build a sheep- 
pen or a corral for his cattle, get married, buy a iiew saddle, in fact do 




A GROUP OP ADOBE HOUSES. 



anything that can be done — his answer is, ' Manana.' Mexico is the land 
of manana, and the habit of procrastination is exasperating to a man of 
any other nationality. You'll get used to it in time, but it takes a long 
while to do so. It wouldn't be so bad if the man literally meant what 
he said, and when to-morrow comes would do as he promised. The 
word is used like the 'coming, sir' of the English waiter, or the Hout de 
suite^ of the French one, and means 'next week,' or 'next year,' or more 
properly an indefinite time in the future." 

" There's another word, or rather two words, where the meaning is 
identical with mai3ana, and the use the same. You'll hear them often in 
Mexico, but more frequently in Central America and farther south," 



26 



THE BOY TEAVELLEKS IN MEXICO. 



" What are they ?" 

"Poco tiem])oP was the reply; "the literal meaning is 'in a little while,' 
but the practical usage is the same as that of manana. Then there's an- 
other lesson in language you may have gratis; ask a man any question 




THE LAND OF MANANA. 



for which he does not know the answer, and his response will be, '•Qiiien 
sale T (who knows ?). It is less exasperating than the other words I've 
told you of, as it is simply a form of saying ' I don't know.' " 

The youths made proper acknowledgment for the instruction they had 
received, and took good care to remember it. 

The dreary plain ceased at length, and the mountains began to be visi- 
ble. About seventy-five miles from Laredo Frank's attention was called 
to a tnesa, or high table-land, a little beyond the station of Lampasas. It 
is a mountain which spreads out flat like a table, and the area on the top 
is said to be not far from 80,000 acres ; its sides are 1400 feet high, and so 
nearly perpendicular that it is impossible to ascend them, except in a few 
places. There is a path three miles long leading to the summit ; it is 
impassable for wheeled vehicles, and can only be traversed by sure-footed 



FROM LAMPASAS TO MONTEREY. 



9,7 



quadrupeds or men. It is called the Mesa de los Cartvjanos (Cartliusians), 
a tribe of Indians wlio probably derived their name from a Benedictine 
monastery which was once established there. The mesa is well watered, 
and its surface is divided beween forest and grass-land in such proportion 
as to make it an excellent pasture. ~^o fences are needed beyond a single 
gate at the top of the path to keep the cattle from straying into the coun- 
try below, unless we include the division fences for the separation of 
herds. 

From Lampasas to Monterey the country improved greatly, and for a 
hundred miles or so the train wound through a valley where the scenery 
was almost constantly picturesque, and the land showed signs of agricult- 
ure and stock-raising. IsTear one of the stations the boys caught sight of 
a threshing-floor, where horses were driven around in a circle to tread out 




THE THRESHING-FLOOR. 



the grain with their hoofs. This is the primitive mode of threshing, to 
which reference is made in the Bible ; it is still in use in various parts 
of southern Europe and also in Asia and northern Africa. The Ameri- 
can invasion of Mexico will doubtless introduce the threshing-machine ; in 



28 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

fact the machine lias ah-eady been introduced, and many of the raisers of 
wheat on a large scale have adopted it. 

In the cultivated districts many fruit-trees were seen, and Fred, made 
note of the fact that the orchards produced figs, pomegranates, lemons, 
oranges, aguacates, and chirimoyas, in addition to most of the fruits of the 
temperate zones. He learned that the State of Nuevo Leon, which they 
were then traversing, produced tobacco, sugar, Indian-corn, wheat, Mexican 
hemp, and similar things, and contained a million dollars' worth of cattle 
and horses. It elevation is from 1000 to 2300 feet above the level of the 
sea, and its climate ranks as temperate or semi-tropical. 

Lampasas is said to be a great resort for smugglers, who carry on a 
regular business, with comparatively little disturbance by the authorities. 
Probably the railway has interfered with them, and they can hardly be 
expected to look upon it with a kindly eye. About thirty miles beyond 
Lampasas is Bustamente, a town founded two hundred years ago by the 
Spaniards as a frontier post against the Indians of the north, and now the 
seat of a manufacturing interest that promises to increase. The cloth of 
Bustamente has a high reputation througliout Mexico, and the town con- 
tains a tribe of Indians descended from the Tlascalans, who helped Cortez 
to conquer the Aztecs and make Guatemozin a prisoner. 

As the train approached Monterey, about four o'clock in the afternoon, 
a mountain shaped like a saddle was pointed out on the left of the line, 
"What do you suppose is the name of that mountain?" said the gentle- 
man who called attention to it, while the eyes of Frank and Fred were 
turned in its direction. 

" I don't know, I'm sure," said Fred ; " perhaps they named it for its 
shape, and call it Saddle Mountain." 

" That's exactly what it is," was the reply ; " it is called La Silla, or 
The Saddle, and is a prominent landmark around Monterey." ' 

Then the gentleman pointed to a mountain on the right which he said 
was called Cerro de la Mitra (Mountain of the Mitre), from its resemblance 
to the mitre worn by a bishop. Then between them, and farther away, he 
pointed out the chain of the Sierras, and the youths realized that they 
were in a region of mountains. 

The train wound through a cleft in the hills, and came to a halt at the 
station of Monterey, a mile and a half from the city. It is proper to re- 
mark that most of the towns and cities of Mexico require the railways to 
stop outside the walls or limits, but for what especial reason, unless to 
give occupation 'to the inhabitants in transporting passengers, baggage, 
and freight, our young friends were unable to ascertain. The custom is 



HINDERANCES TO BUSINESS IN MEXICO. 29 

Spanish as well as Mexican, as the traveller in S]3ain will vividly re- 
member. 

There is a good supply of cabs and omnibuses at the station, and there 
is a horse-railway connecting the city and the railway-station, so that trav- 
ellers have a choice of conveyances. The horse-railway was bnilt by an 
American, who obtained a concession from the Government and thought 
he was making a wonderfully profitable investment. But the local author- 
ities hampered him with many restrictions ; they compelled him to carry 
a policeman on every car, and the policeman generally took the side of 
those who did not pay their fare. It was fashionable to ride in the cars, 
but not fashionable to pay, or, at any rate, it was optional to pay or not. 





SADDLE MOUNTAIN, MONTEREY. 

A good many foreigners who have settled in Mexico complain that 
their enterprises are seriously interfered with by the authorities, national, 
State, and local. Every town and village, according to the old Spanish 
law and custom, has the right to levy tolls or taxes on everything that 
passes through it, and on all business conducted witliin its limits. Then 
the State or district can levy a tax, and the national government comes 
in for a levy of its own in addition. The result is that every enterprise is 
liable to be "taxed to death," and many a man who has carried money 
to Mexico to engage in what promised to be a profitable business has left 
it behind him in the hands of the various authorities. Taxes, forced 
loans, and various expenses that can never be foreseen swallow up all the 
profits and altogether too often the original investment. Yery few silver- 
mines in Mexico pay dividends to their stockholders, and the few that 
are worth owning have no stock for sale. The American saying that "it 



30 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IX MEXICO. 




TIEW OF THE SIERRAS. 



takes a gold-mine to work a silver-mine " is as true of Mexico as of an j 
other country. 

Our friends went to the Hotel Hidalgo, and found it endurable; it 
had been recommended by one of their fellow-passengers on the train, 
who showed his good faith in his recommendation by accompanying tliem 
thither. Immediately after securing rooms and completing arrangements 
for tlieir stay, the party started for a drive around the city, which boasts 
an age of more than three hundred years, having been founded in 1560, 
though it did not receive its present name until 1596. 

Monterey means "king mountain," or "mountain of the king," and 
the name of the city was given in honor of Don Gaspar de Zuuiga, Conde 
de Monterey, Mdio was Viceroy of Mexico in 1596. Tlie name given to 
the settlement in 1560 was Santa Lucia ; a little stream which crosses the 
city from west to east preserves the original appellation, but comparatively 
few of the inhabitants are aware of its orio^in. 



THE STREETS OF MONTEREY. 



31 



CHAPTER III. 

THE AMERICAN INVASION OF TO-DAY.— MONTEREY AS A HEALTH RESORT; ITS 
SITE AND SURROUNDINGS.— THE CATHEDRAL AND OTHER PUBLIC BUILDINGS. 
—CAPTURE OF MONTEREY BY GENERAL TAYLOR.— SHORT HISTORY OF THE 
MEXICAN WAR.— FROM CORPUS CHRISTI TO MONTEREY.— THE ATTACK ON THE 
CITY.— CAPTURE OF THE FORTS AND THE BISHOP'S PALACE.— FRANK RECITES 
A POEM.— LIEUT. U. S. GRANT AND WHAT HE DID AT MONTEREY.— A STORY 
ABOUT JEFFERSON DAVIS.— HOW JOHN PUENIX ESCAPED CASHIERING.— SIGHTS 
OF THE CITY.— THE MARKET-PLACE AND WHAT WAS SEEN THERE.— FRUITS, 
BIRDS, POTTERY, ETC.— IN A MONTEREY HOUSE.— A PALATIAL RESIDENCE. 

THE first oj)portunitj to see a Mexican city was afforded to our friends 
at Monterey, and they fully enjoyed it. Every walk along the streets 
and every drive in the city and its vicinity was full of interest, and there 
was little that escaped their observation. Being the most northern city of 




VIEW OP MONTEREY. 



Mexico, Monterey has been much invaded by Americans during the last 
decade, and many citizens of the United States are established there in 
various lines of business. 

The city has been extensively advertised as a health resort, and consid- 
erable numbers of invalids have gone there ; a fair proportion of them 



32 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



have breathed their last in Monterey or its neighborhood, but the same 
may be said of many other health resorts in different j)arts of the world. 
For the present, invalids would do well to think twice before going to 
Monterey or any other part of Mexico in the hope of recovering their 
health, as the accommodations for them are hardly such as they require. 




THE PLAZA DE ZARAGOZA. 



A Mexican hotel may do well enough for a vigorous man, but it is ill- 
suited to one who should be shielded from draughts, needs to sit in front 
of a comfortable fire, and has a dread of damp walls and similar adver- 
sities. The cooking is suited to robust stomachs rather than to delicate 
ones, and the attendance leaves much to be desired. 

Monterey is built in a plain surrounded by mountains, and the ground 
on which it stands is somewhat broken or undulating in places. It has a 
population of about forty thousand, and is said to be increasing every 
year, in consequence of the impulse which the opening of the railway has 
given it. Our friends visited the Ojo de Agua, a great spring that opens 
in the centre of the city, and furnishes a copious supply of water ; then 
they went to the Plaza Mayor, a pretty garden, with an interesting fount- 
ain in its centre ; then to the Plaza de Zaragoza ; and then to the cathe- 
dral, which looks upon it, and has the Olinrch of San Prancisco as a near 
neighbor. The church is the oldest religious edifice in the city. It is 
said to have been, founded in 1.560, and though there is some obscurity 
about the exact date, it is pretty certain to owe its beginning to the six- 



THE BATTLE OF MONTEREY. 



33 




34 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

teentli century. Bat of the old structure only the foundations remain, 
the present building having been erected about 1730, and it has under- 
gone alterations at various periods since that time. 

The cathedral is quite modern. It was dedicated in 1833, and at the 
time of its dedication had been about thirty years in process of erection. 
The walls are very thick, and its constructors must have possessed the gift 
of foresight, and had in mind its possible uses for war purposes, as it was 
converted into a powder-magazine at the time of General Taylor's attack 
in 1846. Shot and shell fell thickly around it, but the massive walls pre- 
served it from destruction or serious injury, and saved its contents from 
being blown up. The original site selected for the cathedral was at the 
north of the city, and work was begun upon it, but the place was aban- 
doned for the present one. A fort was erected on the abandoned site, 
and it was one of the chief obstacles to the capture of the city by the 
Americans. 

Prank and Fred were especially interested in the war history of Mon- 
terey ; and as soon as the inspection of the Plaza Mayor and the edifices 
around it liad been completed, they asked to be taken to the scene of the 
fighting between the American and Mexican armies. Their guide took 
them first to the bridge of the Purisima, in the north-eastern quarter of 
the city, where there was a sharp battle, in which the Mexicans success- 
fully resisted the Americans, and then to the old citadel — the fort already 
mentioned. It is now in a ruinous condition, and is generally spoken of 
as " the Black Port." 

On the way to the citadel, Doctor Bronson tested the knowledge of 
the youths concerning the events which made Monterey's name so well 
known in the United States. In reply to his questions. Prank and Pred 
alternated with each other in telling the following. Prank being the first 
to speak: 

"General Taylor's army landed at Corpus Christi, in Texas, and 
marched from there to Matamoras, on the Rio Grande, early in 1S46. 
Before crossing the Rio Grande they fought two battles — that of Palo 
Alto on the 8th of May, and the battle of Resaca de la Palma on the 
following day. General Taylor defeated the Mexicans in both battles, 
though his army was much smaller than theirs, the Mexicans having 
about 6000 men and the Americans 3000. After capturing Matamoras 
he advanced into northern Mexico. On the Rio Grande he had been 
joined by a reinforcement of troops, and wlien he came in front of 
Monterey he had between six and seven thousand men." 

" Yes," said Pred, " the historians say he had 6645 officers and men 



TWO INVASIONS OF MEXICO. 



35 




THE bishop's palace. 



altogether, and that the iviexican 
army at Monterey under General 
Ampudia contained fully 10,000 
men." 

" You have evidently been 
studying the History of the Mex- 
ican War very carefully," the Doctor remarked, as the youths paused. 

"We've tried to, certainly," responded Fred, "as we believe we ought 
to know what the relations have been between this country and ours, 
in order to understand intelligently what we see. If we study to-day 
the peaceful invasion of Mexico, we ought to know about the warlike 
one." 



36 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



Doctor Bronson nodded assent to tliis view, and the story of tlie war 
was resumed. 

" General Taylor came in sight of Monterey on September 20th," said 
Frank, " and immediately rode forward till he was within range of one of 
the forts. A cannon was fired upon the group of officers that surrounded 




the general, and immediately the army was ordered to advance and form 
a camp opposite the city, but far enough away from the forts to be out of 
range of the cannon. 

" The battle began the next morning, the 21st, the city being attacked 
on the west by a division commanded by General Worth, whose monu- 
ment stands in front of Madison Square, in New York, and on the west 



THE CAPTURE OF MONTEREY. 37 

by the rest of the army under General Taylor. The Americans had no 
artillery heavier than six-pounders, while the Mexicans had their forts 
filled with large cannon ; and they had a strong force of cavalry, while the 
Americans had a very small one. The forts were attacked first, and one 
after the other they were taken, till the only remaining one outside the 
city was the Bishop's Palace, as it was called, though it was really a fort, 
as we shall see when we get to it. 

" Partly by means of a cannon that was dragged up a hill which com- 
manded the Bishop's Palace, and partly by an attack of the infantry, the 
j)lace was captured, and our flag was over all the heights that overlooked 
the city. It had taken two days to accomplish this, and a great many of 
our soldiers had fallen, but the army had no idea of giving up the attack; 
and when they had possession of the heights, they felt as sure of the vic- 
tory as though it was already won. 

" On the morning of the 23d of September, the third day of the battle, 
a fire was opened on the city from the Bishop's Palace on the west, and 
from two forts on the east, and at the same time the troops on each side 
of the city began to force their way inside towards the Gran Plaza, in the 
centre. The Mexicans fought desperately, and swept the streets with such 
a fire of musketry that our men had to take shelter in the houses and cut 
their way from house to house towards the Gran Plaza. It was slow work, 
and when night came the troops had still two blocks to cut through before 
getting to the plaza. They were getting ready for work early the next 
morning when a flag of truce came from General Ampudia, and the city 
was surrendered." 

" What was the loss of the Americans in the battle ?" queried Doctor 
Bronson, as Frank paused. 

" They lost 158 killed, and 368 wounded," answered Fred, " and the 
Mexican loss was said to be fully one thousand." 

" And to what was the disparity of the losses attributed ?" 

" It was thought," said Fred, " at least so I read in the account pub- 
lished at that time, that the Western and South-western men who fought 
under General Taylor were better marksmen than the Mexicans. The 
Texas riflemen in particular were famous for their skill in shooting, and 
their weapons were better than those of their enemies." 

"You've made a very good short history of the capture of Monterey," 
said the Doctor, " and must write it down for the benefit of your friends 
at home." 

The youths followed this bit of practical advice, and we are permitted 
to publish their story. 



38 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

By the time the talk about the war was ended tlie party had reached 
the citadel, which they visited with interest, and then proceeded to the 
Bishop's Palace, now occupied as a military barrack, and in a bad state of 
repair. While they stood looking down upon the city and the grassy and 
bushy slope of the hill, Frank recited the following piece of verse, which 
was written by Charles Fenno Hoffman shortly after the stirring events 
commemorated in the lines : 

"We were not many — we who stood 

Before the iron sleet that day; 
Yet many a gallant spirit would 
Give half his years, if he but could 
Have been with us at Monterey. 

"Now here, now there, the shot it hailed 

In deadly drifts of fiery spray; 
Yet not a single soldier quailed 
When wounded comrades round them wailed 

Their dying shouts at Montere}'. 

" And on, still on, our columns kept. 

Through walls of flame, its withering way; 

Where fell the dead, the living stept, 

Still charging on the guns that swept 
The slippery streets of Monterej-. 

"The foe himself recoiled aghast 

When, striking where he strongest lay. 
We swooped his flanking batteries past. 
And, braving full their murderous blast. 

Stormed home the towers of Monterey. 

" Our banners on those turrets wave, 
And there our evening bugles play. 
Where orange-boughs above their grave 
Keep green the memory of the brave 
Who fought and fell at Monterey. 

" We were not many — we who pressed 

Beside the brave who fell that day; 
But who of us hath not confessed 
He'd rather share their warrior rest 

Than not have been at Monterej^?" 

"There is one thing we must mention in our account of the battle," 
said Fred, as they were returning from the Bishop's Palace to the city. 

" What is that?" Frank asked. 

" Why, we must say that there was a young officer here named IT. S. 
Grant ; he was a second lieutenant of the Fourth Infantry, and was one of 



LIEUT. U. S. GRANT. 



39 



tliose who charged np the side of the hill to the Bishop's Palace. He after- 
wards became General Grant, whom all the world knows of, and whose 
name will be remembered in America for all time." 

" I didn't think of that when I was talking about the battle," Frank 
answered, " but I remember it all now. And I have read in one of the 
books on Mexico that he was offered promotion for his conduct in the 
battle, but declined it because another man was promoted at the same 
time. In declining the offer he said, 'If Lieutenant deserves promo- 
tion I do not.' " 

"And there's another thing that needs explanation," continued the 
youth, "and that is. the uniform-of the officers and soldiers of our army in 




officers' uniforms in 1S60. 



the pictures of the battles in Mexico. It is quite unlike the uniform worn 

in the Civil War fifteen years later, and now in use." 

" I will explain that," said the Doctor, and he did so in these words : 
"After peace had been declared and our army returned from Mexico, 

the War Departnien.t realized that there were certain features of the uni- 



40 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

form and equipment of the men that might be changed to advantage. ISTo 
action, was taken in tlie matter nntil Jefferson Davis was Secretary of 
War, between 1853 and 1857; and I will here remark that Jefferson Davis 
commanded a regiment of Mississippi Vohmteers during the Mexican 
War, and fought in tliis very battle of Monterey we have just been talk- 
ino' about. Well, Mr. Davis sent a circular letter to the officers of the 
army, stating that changes were contemplated, and asking for suggestions 
from them, and the inducement was held out that those who suggested 
changes which were adopted would be liberally compensated. 

" One of the circulars was received by Lieut. George H. Derby, who 
afterwards obtained considerable literary reputation as 'John Phenix.' 
Derby was a born humorist, and generally saw the ludicrous side of a sub- 
ject before anything else. In a short time after receiving the circular he 
sent a variety of suggestions to the Department which were very funny, to 
say the least. 

" He designed a hat which, in addition to covering the head, could be 
used as a camp-kettle, a water-bucket, and a feed-bag for a horse, and with 
the design for the article, which was to be made of sheet-iron, there was a 
picture representing it applied to each of its proposed uses. 

" Instead of the shoulder cross-belts, he proposed that the soldier should 
have a leather belt around his waist, and to this belt should be attached a 
stout hook with a shank six inches long, and the point of the hook stand- 
ing outward from the man's back. On this hook the soldier could hang 
his knapsack or equipments when on the march. He could be harnessed 
by means of it so as to drag a wagon or a cannon ; and in an assault on a 
fortress he could be made to drag a scaling-ladder up the walls by means 
of this hook. Derby also proposed that the officers should be provided 
with poles like rake-handles, ten or twelve feet long, with rings at one end, 
and if a soldier should try to run away in battle he could be di'agged l)ack 
to duty by means of the hook. 

" Derby was skilful with the pencil, and he sent a sketch of a battle-field 
in winch the various uses of the hook were depicted. To say that Jeffer- 
son Davis was angry when he read the letter is to put the case mildly ; he 
turned red and blue with rage, and took the document to a cabinet meet- 
ing that was being held on the afternoon of the day he received Derby's 
communication. The members of the cabinet laughed over the sug- 
gestions and pictures, and when Davis declared he would have Derby 
cashiered for disrespect to the Secretary of War, they advised him to say 
nothing. 'If the story gets out,' said one of them, 'you'll be the laugh- 
ing-stock of the country from one end to the other, and will never hear the 



LIEUT. DERBY AND JEFFERSON DAVIS. 



41 




MOUNTAIN SCENE NEAR MONTEREY. 



end of it. And, besides, there's some originality about the man, and be 
may yet send something that will be really useful.' 

"Mr. Davis cooled down, and the story didn't come out until years 
afterwards. The result of the recommendations of various officers of the 
army was that the old ' bellows-top ' cap disappeared, and so did other 
features of the soldier's uniform and equipment. That is why the picture 
of the battle of Monterey is so unlike that of any of the battles of the 
Civil War, so far as the uniforms of officers and men are concerned." 

The youths had a hearty laugh over the story of Lieutenant Derby's 
suggestions, Frank thought they were too good to be lost, and he decided 
to write them down at the first opportunity. 

On their return to the city the party visited the Alameda, which forms 



42 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

a very pretty promenade and is well shaded with trees, though Frank 
thought it appeared in rather a neglected condition. Then they drove to 
the hot springs at Topo Chico, about three miles out from the city in a 
northerly direction, and indulged in the luxury of a hot bath in natural 
water. The manager of the establishment said that the baths had a tem- 
perature of 106 degrees Fahrenheit, and possessed a high reputation for 



THE ALAMEDA, ilONTEREY. 

curing nervous, rheumatic, and other diseases. The arrangements for bath- 
ing were formerly very poor, but a new bath-house was erected in 1887, 
and resulted in a great increase of patronage. 

Of course a visit was paid to the market-place, and the novelties of the 
spot received due attention. The most interesting features were the fruit 
and flower markets. Doctor Bronson told the youths that the Indians of 
Mexico had a passionate fondness for flowers long before the arrival of 
their Spanish conquerors, and it continues to the present time. There 
was a fine display of flowers, and the prices were so low that Frank and 
Fred regretted that they did not know some fair ones to whom they could 
send baskets and bouquets. Determined to do something by way of 
patronizing the flower-sellers, they bought a quantity of flowers and sent 
them to a hospital which their guide pointed out. "They may serve to 
cheer some poor invalid," said Frank, "and the market is so attractive 
that I want to encourage the trade." 

The semi-tropical character of Monterey was shown by the fruits, 
which seemed to comprise the principal products of two zones, the tropi- 



TPIE MARKET OF MONTEREY. 



43 



cal and the temperate. There were all the fruits named in the last chap- 
ter as growing in the region near Lampasas, together with three or four 
others. Monterey is situated 1800 feet above the level of the sea, so that 
it is cooler than other places in the same latitude but at a lower elevation. 
Some of the fruits sold in the market of the city were not grown in the 
immediate neighborhood, but in the lower regions to the eastward. 

Fred called Frank's attention to the bird-sellers with their wares in 
large wooden cages, evidently of liome construction. The canary seems 
to have spread pretty well over the world ; his singing powers have made 
him welcome every where "he goes, and our young friends were not at all 
surprised to find him in the market of Monterey. Several other varieties 
of singing-birds were displayed, and the prices which were asked for them 
seemed very low ; but the Doctor whispered to the youths that if they 
bought anything in the market they should not offer more than a quarter 




NATIVE POTTERY. 



of what was demanded, and gradually advance their figures to a half or 
possibly three-fourths. In a country where time is of no value every- 
body who has h,ny thing to sell expects to haggle about the price. 

Some of the pottery in the market was so good that the boys consulted 
Doctor Bronson as to the advisability of sending home a few specimens 



M 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



of it. The Doctor checked their enthusiasm by reminding them that they 
were just then at the beginning of their journey, and it would be prudent 
to delay purchases until reaching the capital. A few jars and pots were 
selected and bargained for, more by way of practice in the language and 

customs than for any other purpose, 
and they were left with an Amer- 
ican merchant, who undertook to 
shij) them to jSTew York. They 
were all of Indian workmanship, 
the best having come, so the deal- 
er said, from Guadalajara. Mexi- 
can pottery deserves a higher rank 
among ceramics than it has hith- 
erto enjoyed, and some of the 
handiwork of the descendants of 
the Aztecs would be worthy of 
admiration in any collection. 

There were scores and scores of 
patient mules standing with droop- 
ing ears and waiting for their bur- 
dens to be removed. They were 
laden with everything that an in- 
habitant of Monterey could want 
to buy — milk, vegetables, fruits, 
fuel, hides, sugar, beans, wheat, 
iron-work, in fact anything and everything that has a place in a market. 
Donkeys are the beasts of burden at Monterey, and almost in the same 
category belong the cargadores, or porters, who are licensed and numbered 
exactly like cabs or drays in an American city. These men are identical 
with the Turkish hamals ; they carry heavy burdens with apparent ease, 
and it is no uncommon sight to see one of them slowly creej)ing along 
with a piano, an iron safe, or a ban-el of wine on his back, or- a lighter 
burden on his head in the same way that the negro carries it. A gentle- 
man who was stopping at the hotel said he had knoM^n a cargador to 
transport a safe weighing six hundred pounds without any apparent suf- 
fering a distance of half a mile without stopping to rest. 

But the donkeys and cargadores do not have a monopoly of the local 
carrying trade, as there are great numbers of carts drawn by oxen, tliat 
have come in from the country with loads of produce seeking a market. 
These carts are of rude construction, and their axles are rarely, if ever, 




A SCENE IN THE MARKET. 



MEXICAN CAKTS. 



45 



If',; 14^ 




A COUF.T-YARD IN MONTEREY. 



greased. They creak and groan in a manner that falls unpleasantly on 
the ear and often suggests that the vehicles are animated beings suffering 
beneath their burdens and endeavoring to make their grief known. And 
this reminds us of something which Fred remarked to Frank when the 



46 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



latter was wondering how the Mexicans could endure such a continued 
complaint of the axles of their carts. 

"I've been thinking of the same thing," was the replj, " especially 
as the Mexicans are opprobriously termed 'greasers' by the people of 
Texas and the South-west generally. It's a sort of lucus a non lucendo, 

that appellation of greaser, at 
least so far as their cart-axles are 
concerned," 

After seeing the market, they 
strolled along some of the nar- 
row streets, which appeared 
gloomy enough, with their long 
stretches of masonry, broken 
only here and there with a 
grated window or a balcony 
which seemed to be a part of a 
prison, so heavily was it barred 
with iron. Some of the larger 
and finer buildings have hand- 
some windows, whose design 
was evidently brought from Old 
Spain, and in turn obtained from 
the Moors, Our friends were 
invited to a house which had 
formerly belonged to one of the 
y Spanish residents, but is now the 
ty of an American merchant, Fred 
thus describes it : 

"Like all the better class of houses in Monte- 
re3'^,this one is built in the form of a hollow square. 
This style of architecture was brought fi*om Spain 
by the conquerors of the country, and it reminded 
us of houses in Damascus and otlier cities of the 
Oriental world. The square encloses a jpatio. or 
court-yard, and the rooms of the lower story open on the patio ; there is a 
colonnade surrounding the yard, and it is freely ornamented with tropical 
plants and flowers, so that you seem at first glance to have entered a con- 
servatory. Yines climb around most of the columns of the colonnade, and 
in the centre is a well in which hangs, not the 'old oaken bucket' made 
famous in song, but an equally substantial bucket of leather. The water 




A WINDOW IN MONTKREY. 



A PALATIAL RESIDENCE. 



47 



drawn from the well is cool and sweet, and from the length of the rope it 
is evident that the excavation goes down to a great deptli. Monterey is 
abundantly supplied with water, and in this respect as well as in the ap- 
pearance of some of the interiors of the houses, it is entitled to be called 
the Damascus of Mexico. 

"There is one house in Monterey, the residence of Don Patricio Milmo, 
which has a double-arched court-yard and gallery, and is most liberally sup- 
plied with plants and flowers, among which a botanist would enjoy himself 
for many hours, and an ordinary mortal with no scientific knowledge need 
not be far behind him. There are some very pretty marbles in the neigh- 
borhood of Monterey, and they have been liberally used in the ornamenta- 
tion of this and other houses. Don Patricio is a wealthy banker, and the 
owner of an immense area of land in Nuevo Leon, including much of the 
building-ground in and around Monterey." 




TIEVV OF SIERRAS FROM BISHOP'S PALACE. 



48 THE BOY TKAVELLEES IN MEXICO. 



CHAPTEE lY. 

SOUTHWARD TO SALTILLO.— SANTA CATERINA.— REMARKABLE GATES.— SCENERY 
OF THE SIERRA MADRE.— WAY-SIDE ATTRACTIONS.— THE CACTUS; ITS FLOWERS 
AND MANY VARIETIES.— SALTILLO.— THE ALAMEDA.— MEXICAN CURRENCY.- 
THE BATTLE-FIELD OF BUEXA VISTA.— BY CARRIAGE AND SADDLE.— A NIGHT 
AT A HACIENDA.— MEXICAN COOKERY.— TORTILLAS, PUCHERO, FRIJOLES, TA- 
MALES, AND OTHER EDIBLES.— HISTORY OF THE MEXICAN WAR FROM MONTE- 
REY TO BUENA VISTA.— 5,000 AMERICANS DEFEAT 20,000 MEXICANS.— DESCRIP- 
TION OF THE FIELD.— COTTON FACTORY AT SALTILLO.— COTTON MANUFACTURES 
IN MEXICO. 

O]^ resuming their journey through Mexico, Doctor Bronson and his 
young companions proceeded by tlie railway southward to Saltillo, 
sixty-seven miles from Monterey. 

As they passed Santa Caterina, eight or ten miles beyond Monterey, 
one of their fellow-passengers told them that there were some interesting 
caves not very far from the station, and also near Garcia, thirteen miles 
farther on. A remarkable hole in the mountain near Santa Caterina was 
pointed out by the same gentleman, but in spite of his voluble account of 
the attractive features of a journey there, they did not consent to stop for 
the excursion. They also decided to allow the caves of Garcia to take care 
of themselves, much to the disappointment of their informant. 

The beauty of the scenery along the railway, almost from the very mo- 
ment of leaving Monterey, kept their eyes busy on both sides of the train. 
The railway for some distance follows the San Juan Valley, which dimin- 
ishes in width as it ascends. The labored puffing of the locomotive told 
that the grade was a steep one, and it was evident that the engine was ex- 
erting all its powers. On most trains two locomotives are required, and 
an extra one is always added unless the number of carriages is small and 
their cargoes are light. 

The scenery of the Sierra Madre is remarkably fine, and surpassed by 
that of very few railway routes in the world. Frank compared it to that 
of the Brenner or Semmering passes of the Alps, and Fred said he was re- 
minded of the Blue Mountains in Australia, and the route traversed by the 
railway between Colombo and Kandy, in Ceylon. But they agreed that it 



A RIDE AMONG THE MOUNTAINS. 



49 



differed in some respects from all these routes, and had a beauty and gran- 
deur of its own, just as did each of the places thej had mentioned. On 
each side of the valley the mountains rose very steeply, and in many places 
they were nearly, if not quite, perpendicular. The rocks were of various 
shades, in which red had a prominent place, and on the steepest part of 
the slopes there was no place where vegetation could cling. 




SANTA CATERISA, NEAR MONTEREY. 



The best of the scenery was in the neighborhood of Garcia ; beyond 
that point it became less grand, as the mountains were farther away in 
the widening valley, and the steep cliffs were less numerous. But the 

4: 



50 



THE HOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



ascent was steady, and brought tlie train to the phitcau and to a much 
liiglier elevation tlian that of Monterey. Monterey, as before stated, is 
1800 feet above sea-level ; Saltillo is at an elevation of 5200 feet, and con- 
sequently the railway ascends 3400 feet in passing from the former to the 
latter city. 




THE ORfiAN CACTUS. 



The old ronte of the diligence before the railway was built afforded an 
exciting ride from San Gregario to Rinconada, as the descent was very 
rapid and the coach went down the incline with great rapidity. At one 
turn in the road there was a point where a misstep would have sent the 
whole conveyance down a precipitous slope of a thousand feet into the 
valley below. A thoughtful American who travelled that route years ago 
regarded the possibilities of such a slide, and estimated that the diligence, 
passengers and all, would be worth not more than nineteen cents a bushel 
after making the descent into the yawning gulf. 

Frank and Fred wished they could gather some of the bright cactus- 
flowers which abounded along the route. There are many varieties of 
cactus in Mexico; in fact the country may be said to l)e the land of the 
cacti. Botanists have described more than sixty species; they vary in 
height and size from the little plant hardly larger than a spray of clover 



THE CACTUS FAMILY. 



51 



up to the gigantic growths that rise more than thirty feet above the 
ground. The flowers run from pure white to a deep scarlet and purple, 
and some of the flowers are of great beauty. A peculiarity of the cactus 
is that it thrives best in poor soils, and on a great part of the ground 
where it grows few other vegetable products could maintain an existence. 
The largest of the cactus family is scientifically known as the Candela- 
brum^ but the Mexicans call it the Organo, or organ ; it grows in straight 
hexagonal columns, and when many of these columns are clustered to- 
gether it bears quite a resemblance to a church organ with its pipes. One 
variety of cactus nourishes the cochineal insect ; another is used for hedges, 
and owing to the sharp spines for which the plant is noted, it forms an im- 
pervious barrier to man or quadruped. The cactus generally has inside 
its flower a mass of edible substance, and in some localities this cactus- 
fruit is collected and sold in the markets. 

The cactus plant is not wholly inedible, as the donkeys of Mexico feed 
on some of them, and the goat will also make a meal of the leaves and 
stalks. But this is not to be wondered at when it is borne in mind that 
the goat is popularly credited with 
dining upon tomato-cans, scraps of 
tin, old boots, newspapers, umbrellas, 
and other articles Tiot ordinarily in- 
cluded among esculents. Of late 
years the cactus has been found use- 
ful for paper-making, and thousands 
of tons of it are annually converted 
into paper flbre. 

A little past eight o'clock in the 
evening the train rolled into Saltil- 
lo, a city containing from fifteen to 
twenty thousand inhabitants, the cap- 
ital of the State of Cohaliuila, and for 

some years the terminus of the National Railway. There are several 
cotton factories at Saltillo or in its immediate vicinity, and the place 
boasts of its scrapes. Evidently the boast is justified, as the scrapes of 
Saltillo have a reputation all through northern Mexico. Our friends im- 
proved the opportunity to provide themselves with these needed articles 
of Mexican travel, and through the rest of their journey they carried their 
souvenirs of Saltillo and were well satisfied with them. 

They had been advised to go to the Hotel Tomasichi, but with the con- 
dition that they must not expect anything remarkable in the way of a hotel. 




Ij:^* 



VARIETIES OF CACTUS. 



52 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



The Doctor secured a carriage which was so rickety that it threatened dis- 
sohition before reaching the Plaza Mayor, where the hotel is situated, but 
by good-fortune it held together and landed them safely. The proprietor 
of the hotel told them that there was only one good carriage in the city, 
and if they wanted it for the next day it would be well to order it at once. 




IN THE SAN JUAN VALLEY. 



It belonged to Senor Sada, the owner of the diligence that would take 
them to Jaral, where it connected with the trains on the International Rail- 
way. The advice was taken, and the one good carriage of Saltillo was or- 
dered for the next day's driving in and around the city. Six reals, or 
seventy-five cents, an hour was the price of the vehicle, with a gratifica- 
tion to the driver. 

By this time Frank and Fred were able to make all their financial 
calculations in the currency of the country. Here is the list of values 
which they had noted down and committed to memory : 

" The peso, or dollar, is divided into eight reals or reales, of the value 
of 12| cents each. A medio real is Q\ cents, a cuartillo is 3 cents, and a 
tlaco is 1^ cents ; 2 reals make a peseta (25 cents), and 4 reals a toston 



MEXICAN CURRENCY. 



53 



(50 cents). Values are reckoned in centavos (100 centavos make 1 peso), 
reals, or pesos until large sums are reached, when they are counted in 
gold. Of gold coins there are the escudito de oro, $1 ; escudo de oro, $2 ; 
pistola, $4 ; media onza de oro, $8 ; and onza de oro (gold ounce), $16." 

American currency can be used without difficulty in the large cities, 
but not elsewhere. Notes of the Banco Nacional and the Bank of Lon- 
don, Mexico, and South America can be carried in place of silver, which 
is inconveniently heavy ; but our friends were advised not to rely upon 
bank-notes of any kind away from the lines of railway. 

Doctor Bronson told the youths that a metric system of coinage was 
established some years ago, but the common people were prejudiced 




A SOLID CITIZEN. 



against it, and it had made comparatively little progress. Half and 
quarter dollars are never spoken of as fifty and twenty-five centavos, 
but as quatro reals or dos reals. 

We will return to Saltillo, where we left our friends while we made an 
excursion among Mexican currency values. Their supper was a composite 
of Mexican and Italian cookery, Tomasichi being an Italian and his cook a 
native of Mexico. The chief had instructed the subordinate in the ways 



64 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

of the kitchens of Rome and Naples, but not sufficiently to drive out the 
ideas of the land of the Aztecs. Stimulated bj curiosity and also by a 
good appetite, the Doctor and his nephews made an excellent meal, or at 
least it was good enough to make them wish to taste a dinner entirely 
Mexican in character. We will see later on how they succeeded in their 
experiment. 

The next morning they started in good season to inspect the city and 
its surroundings. They found the Alameda much prettier than that of 
Monterey, and some travellers have pronounced it the most attractive one 
to be found in Mexico. The inhabitants are deservedly proud of it. It 
is a popular resort at all hours, and especially in the evening, when every- 
body goes out for a promenade. The Plaza Mayor is also an attractive 
spot, and the youths washed to make a sketch of it from the side opposite 
the cathedral, but decided not to take the time to do so, as a photograph 
would answer their purpose. 

The general features of Saltillo are much like those of Monterey,, and 
consequently a detailed description of them is unnecessary. 

Before starting on the round of sight-seeing, Doctor Bronson made in- 
quiries concerning a visit to the battle-field of Buena Yista, which is some 
ten miles south of Saltillo. The inquiries resulted in an arrangement to 
see the spot made famous in the history of the Mexican War, where 5000 
Americans put 20,000 Mexicans to flight. 

The battle-field lies two or three miles south of the hacienda of Buena 
Vista, and the road from Saltillo rises nearly a thousand feet before reach- 
ing that place ; consequently a journey thither must be done at a slow 
j)ace, and it was decided to take two days, or rather a night and part of 
two days, for the excursion. 

Early in the afternoon the party started from Saltillo for the hacienda 
of Buena Yista, which they reached before nightfall. The youths were 
happy at the prospect of passing a night in a hacienda, and obtaining a 
glimpse of rural Mexican life. 

The building w^here they were received was in the form of a hollow 
square, like the houses of Montere}'-, already described. The entrance was 
sufficiently broad to permit the admission of vehicles, and the carriage 
was driven inside before the travellers alighted. According to Mexican 
custom, a onoso, or servant, had been sent in advance to giv^e notice of the 
advent of the strangers and have the house in readiness. The visitors 
were shown to rooms on the lower floor : the Doctor was assigned to a 
I'oora by himself, while the boys were lodged together in a large room 
very meagrely furnished. The beds were straw -filled mattresses, laid 



A NIGHT IN A HACIENDA. 



55 



upon strips of rawliide stretched tiglitly across a frame, and the boys pro- 
nounced it an excellent s<ubstitute for some of the "patent spring mat- 
tresses" which are sold in American cities. The linen was scrupulously 
clean, which is not always the case, in Mexico, but tlie supply of blankets 
was so light that it was evident the travellers were expected to make use 
of their scrapes to keep off the chill of the night air. 

They did not stay long inside the room, as they were anxious to see 
the surroundings of the place. So they wandered about, their first visit 
being to the stable, which they found commodious enough for the most 
fastidious horse in the world. " I have heard," said Fred, " that the peo- 
ple of this country are more particular about their horses than about them- 
selves ; a Mexican will take good care of his liorse, but leave his wife and 
children to go hungry and half clothed." 

"To judge by the difference between the rooms of the hacienda and 
the stable," responded Frank, " the statement seems to be well founded. 




ON THE ROAD TO BUENA VISTA. 



The stable is certainly better ventilated, and the horses have no reason to 
complain of their quarters. A Mexican depends so much on his horse 
that he ought from ver}'^ selfishness to be very careful of him." 

From the stable they wandered to the kitchen, where three or four 
native women were at work preparing the meal which the strangers were 
to eat. 

The first thing to attract Frank's attention was a woman kneeling on 
the fioor over a flat stone raised at one end, on which she was rolling 
some dough into very thin sheets. " That must be a tortilla-maker," said 



56 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



Frank ; " we have had tortillas several times since we came into the coun- 
try, but this is the first good chance I've had to see them made." 

From his observation at this kitchen, and from subsequent informa- 
tion, the youth made the follow- 
ing note : 

" Tortillas, or cakes, are made 
from corn-meal, which is ground 
by hand on a flat stone called a 
metate, a word of Aztec origin. 
The corn is soaked in lime-water 
till the hull can be separated 
from it, and then it is pounded 
and rolled upon the metate until 
it is ground into meal. In this 
work the woman uses a cylinder 
of stone something like . the 
American rolling-pin, or very 
often she uses a flat or slightly 
rounded stone, with which she 
pounds and twists for hours. 
When the meal is sufficiently 
ground a little water is added, 
and it is worked into dough ; the 
dough is then rolled or patted in 
the hand until it is almost as 
thin as a knife-blade and formed 
into circular cakes. The cakes 
are baked on an iron comal, or griddle, which has been previously held over 
the fire until it is so hot that the cooking is done in a few moments. They 
are not allowed to brown, and are best when served hot. They are gen- 
erally without salt or other seasoning, and are very tasteless at first to a 
stranger ; but after one has become accustomed to tortillas he prefers them 
to any other kind of corn-cake." 

The equipment of the kitchen was exceedingly simple, and the youths 
wondered how a French cook would get along with none but Mexican 
utensils to get up a meal with. The stove, or cooking range, consisted 
simply of a wall or bank of solid adobe about two feet high, and of the 
same width ; this bank was built up against one side of the kitchen, which 
was ten or twelve feet square, and it extended the whole length of that 
side. There were depressions in the bank, in which small fires of char- 




A SERVANT AT THE HACIENDA. 



SCENE IN A PATIO. 



57 




NEAR THE KITCHEN. 



58 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



coal or M'ood were burning ; on tliese fires tlie pots, pans, and griddles 
were placed, and the process of cooking went on. Tliere was no chimney, 
the smoke escaping, or being supposed to escape, through an opening in 
the roof directly over the cooking range. 

But the kitchen of the common people is less elaborate than this. It 
consists simply of a mound of clay, perha^DS a foot in height and a yard iit 




MAKING TORTILLAS. 



diameter, and depressed in the centre. Little fires in this depression fur- 
nish the heat for cooking the food placed in the pots and kettles, which 
are of common unglazed earthen-ware. The cook sits or squats on the 
floor close by this primitive range, while the mistress of the kitchen pre- 
viously described stands, and can walk about at will without the trouble 
of rising. 

In some parts of Mexico the cooking is done out-of-doors. This is par- 
ticularly the case in the southern portion, and in the season of rains the 



A MEXICAN DINNER. 



59 



weather often reduces culinary operations to a very limited quantity. The 
more rain the less dinner, unless the food is eaten raw ; but as it consists 
largely of fruits, the inconvenience is less serious than it might be other- 
wise. 

When our young friends went to dinner they found a repast that was 
entirely Mexican in character. After it was over they made notes of 
what they had seen and eaten, and this was the result : ^ 

" We had tortillas, of course, and very good they were. The dinner 
began with a soup, which was so good that we asked how it was made, as 




A PRIMITIVE KITCHEN. 



we thought it might be tried by some of pur cooks at home. Here is 
what they told us : 

" ' We start this soup with a chicken broth just as chicken broth is 
made anywhere else. Then we take the meat of the chicken, the white 
part only, after it has been boiled very tender, and pick it into little bits 
of shreds. We take some pounded almonds, the yolks of hard-boiled 
eggs, a little bread which has been soaked in milk, a little spice of some 



60 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

kind, and plenty of pepper, and we mix the wliole up togetlier till it 
forms a hard paste. We make this paste into little balls and drop them 
into the soup when it is boiling hot and just before it is brought to the 
table.' 

"If you want a good soup and a new one just try this. You may not 
hit the seasoning the first time, but when you do you'll find you've some- 
thing worth eating. 

" After the soup we had a puchero, which is said to be a very popular 
dish with the Mexicans, but we were not particularly fond of it. They 
begin it by boiling mutton to make a broth, and then they throw in every 
sort of garden vegetable cut in small pieces — apples, pears, squashes, toma- 
toes, green corn, onions, potatoes, carrots, parsnips, red or green peppers, 
in fact any and everything from the garden that is edible. There is so 
much pepper in the mess that it burns your mouth like an East Indian 
curry, but it is said to be good for the stomach and climate. They tell us 
we'll like it after a while ; and perhaps we shall, but we certainly don't 
now. It's a good deal like the down East stew, with the addition of the 
hashed peppers and tree-fruits. 

"Next we had a tamal de casuella, which was translated into ' corn- 
meal pot-pie.' As nearly as we could make out, it is made by putting 
a mixture of scalded meal, flour, eggs, and melted lard into a broth in 
which chicken and pork have been boiled, so as to make a thin paste. 
Then make a mixture of the boiled pork and chicken hashed reason- 
ably tine, along with red peppers and tomatoes, and cook them in lard. 
Next you spread the paste on the bottom and sides of a dish that has 
been well greased so as to prevent sticking, lay in your meat mixture, 
cover with more of the paste, and bake it gently but thoroughly. For a 
hungry man the dish ought to be very satisfying. 

" Our dinner ended with finjoles, or beans ; and we remark here that 
beans are the principal food of the Mexicans of the lower ranks of life, 
and are largely used by the middle and upper classes. The great major- 
ity of Mexicans eat them twice a day, and a dinner would be incomplete 
without them. The annual crop of these beans in Mexico must be some- 
thing enormous, and its failure would be as bad as that of wheat in our 
Northern States, potatoes in Ireland, or codfish along the New England 
coast. 

"They cook them in various ways, but the favorite form is in a stew. 
They are usually considered unwholesome if eaten on the day they are 
cooked ; they are always prepared with pepper, either green or red, and 
the preparation is so hot with pepper that one seems to be eating 



THE BATTLE OF BUENA VISTA. 



61 



melted lead while partaking (Afrijolea a la Mexican. Peppers enter into 
nearly all the Mexican cookery ; an American who does not like them 
told us that the proportions for a Mexican stew were one pound of meat, 
one quart of water, and one pound of hashed peppers. It is a common 
remark in Texas and Colorado that a wolf will not eat a dead Mexican 
because he is so impregnated with pepper that even the stomach of that 
voracious animal can't stand it." 

The Mexican dinner pi^oved a digestible one ; at all events Frank and 
Fred slept soundly and were fully refreshed for the visit to the battle- 
field on the following day. Saddle-horses were in readiness as soon as 




THE GUIDE ON THE BATTLE-FIELD. 



breakfast was over, and the party made a good start. We will listen to 
Fred's account of the excursion : 

"After the capture of Monterey, General Taylor remained for a while 
at that city, and then marched upon Saltillo, wliich he occupied without 
opposition. General Scott ordered the divisions of Worth and Twiggs to 
join him at Yera Cruz for the advance upon the City of Mexico, and this 
reduced Taylor's force to 5000 men, nearly all of them volunteers. The 



62 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

Mexicans assembled a large army at San Luis Potosi, and advanced upon 
Saltillo with 20,000 men, expecting to drive the Americans out of the 
country. 

"On the 22d of February, 1847 — Washington's birthday — General 
Taylor met them at Buena Yista, or rather at tlie pass of La Angostura 
(the narrows), three miles south of the hacienda which gives the name to 
the battle. He occupied a position where he had great advantage, as a 
single battery of artillery protected tlie entire front, while the flanks were 
defended by steep gullies and ravines that the Mexicans could not hope to 
pass, and by the mountains that rose on the east to a height of 2000 feet. 

"There is a plateau to the east which Santa Anna, the Mexican com- 
mander, tried to reach, as by gaining it he would be able to turn the pass 
where the Americans were posted. Some of his troops advanced to it 
during the afternoon of the 22d, but were driven back by the Americans; 
during the night the Mexican army gained the plateau, and the Ameri- 
cans then changed their position to the plain at the base, but continuing 
to hold the entrance of the pass. 

" On the morning of the 23d the fighting began in full earnest, the 
Mexicans attacking in three heavy columns, which were directed on the 
American left. The American line was broken on that side, but the cen- 
tre and right held their ground and drove the enemy back. Then the 
Americans attacked the Mexican infantry on the right and drove it back. 
As a last move, Santa Anna formed his whole force into a single column, 
which drove the Americans back for some distance, until tlie Mexicans 
were checked by the artillery. In this last part of the battle, when the 
cause of the Americans seemed lost, General Taylor gave the celebrated 
order, which has passed into history, ' Give them a little more grape. Cap- 
tain Bragg.' Captain Bragg's battery of artillery was stationed on one of 
the little mounds or hillocks at the entrance of the defile, and from that 
point he threw an iron hail among the advancing Mexicans that drove 
them into disorder and flight. 

" The battle lasted all day, and when night came the two armies occu- 
pied very nearly the same positions they held in the morning. The men 
slept where they were, and General Taylor w^as uncertain w^hether the bat- 
tle would be resumed the next morning or not. When morning came it 
was seen that the Mexican army had fled, and the whole ground where 
they were at sunset was deserted. About 20,000 men had been beaten 
by less than 5000. Their losses w^ere placed at 2000, while that of the 
Americans was 746, or about one-sixth their entire number. Gen. Lew. 
Wallace, in writing about the battle, says that by every rule of scientific 



64 



THE BOY TKAVELLEitS IN MEXICO. 



warfare the Americans were beaten oftener than there were hours in the 
day, but they did not know it ; they rallied and fought, and rallied and 
fought again, till they finally ' wrung victory from the hands of assured 
defeat.' 

"We spent two or three hours on the battle-field, visiting all the points 
of interest and listening to the story as it was told by our guide, an intelli- 
gent Mexican who was born in the vicinity, and has latterly made it his 
business to show strangers over the ground. He said there had been very 
few changes since the battle. The public road runs straight through the 
battle-field, and it is easy to understand the positions of the opposing 




BOLL OF MEXICAN COTTON PLANT. 



, armies. One thing we understood, after seeing the ground, which we did 
not comprehend before: we had wondered why the Mexicans made so 
little use of their cavalry, of which they had 4000, and the Mexican 
horsemen are among the best in the world. When we saw how the 
ground is cut up with harrancas^ or deep ravines, making it impossible 
for companies and regiments of mounted men to preserve their formation, 
we did not wonder any more. 



EXTENT OF THE COTTON INDUSTRY. 



65 



"We returned to the liacienda in time for the mid-day meal, and in the 
afternoon went back to Saltillo. The journey to Saltillo was quickly 
made, as the road descends a good deal, and the horses went along at an 
excellent pace." 

The rest of the day was spent in sight-seeing about Saltillo, including 
visits to some of the cotton and other factories, for which the place is 
famed. The machinery in the cotton factories is of foreign make — some 
of it from England and some from the United States. The cloth made 
there is of ordinary quality, and sells for a price that ought to give a fine 
profit to the owners of the establishment. Frank asked about the wages 
of the laborers in the mills, and found that they received from thirty to 
fifty cents a day for twelve or fourteen hours' work, according to their 
skill and the amount of labor they performed. 

It is estimated that about 30,000,000 pounds, or 60,000 bales, of cotton 
are annually converted into cloth in Mexico. Most of the raw cotton is 
grown in the country ; and what with the cultivation of the product and 
its manufacture into textiles, it is thought that 50,000 families are sup- 
ported by the cotton industry. Where the mills are carefully managed 
they are profitable, and make a liberal return for the investment of capital. 




xp-^ 



PICKING COTTON. 



Q6 THE BOY TKAVELLEKS IN MEXICO. 



CHAPTEE Y. 

FROM SALTILLO TO JARAL.— A JOURNEY BY DILIGENCE.— PECULIARITIES OF DIL- 
IGENCE TRAVEL.— BRIGANDAGE ; HOW THE GOVERXMEXT SUPPRESSED IT.— 
ROBBERS TURNED INTO SOLDIERS.— STORIES OF BRIGANDS AND THEIR WORK ; 
THEIR TREATMENT OF PRISONERS. — A CASE OF POLITENESS.— DINNER AT A 
WAY-SIDE mi^i.— CHILE COJV C^iJA'ifi'. —DESCRIPTION OF CHIHUAHUA. —THE 
SANTA EULALIA MINES; ROMANTIC STORY OF THEIR DISCOVERY.— TORREON 
AND LERDO.— COTTON IN TRANSIT.— STATISTICS OF COTTON IN MEXICO.— FRES- 
NILLO.— CALERA.— A BAD BREAKFAST.— ARRIVAL AT ZACATECAS.— LODGED 
IN AN OLD CONVENT. 

BRIGHT and early tlie next morning our friends were ready for the 
journey to Jaral, where they were to connect with the train on the 
International Railway to carry them farther into Mexico. The distance 
is about forty miles, and was to be made by diligence, as the railway from 
Jaral to Saltillo was not then completed. They by no means regretted 
this, as a ride in one of these vehicles would be a novelty. The boys had 
read and heard a great deal about diligence travel in Mexico, and were 
more than willing to have an experience of it. 

The start was made about seven o'clock in the morning, and there was 
a considerable crowd in the street to see them off. The arrival and de- 
parture of the diligence is an event in a Mexican town, though less so 
than it was before the days of the railway. It is probable that by the 
time this book is in the hands of the reader, the locomotive will have a 
finished track between Saltillo and Jaral, and the diligence will be known 
no more, except as a relic of past days. Those who have been jolted for 
hours and days in these heavily built carriages and over bad roads will 
give the heartiest kind of a welcome to the new order of things. The dil- 
igence will long continue on many of the side roads in Mexico, where it 
will not pay to build the railway, just as the stage-coach still exists in parts 
of the United States ; but the great through routes have lost it for all time. 

Immediately on their arrival at Saltillo, before going to Buena Yista, 
Doctor Bronson secured places for the trio in the diligence for Jaral ; at 
the diligence offices all through Mexico, the rule of "first come first 
served" is followed as in a steamship or a Pullman car, and when the ve- 



DILIGENCE TEAVEL. 



67 




DEPARTURE OF THE DILIGENCE. 



hide is full the traveller whose place is unsecured must wait for the next 
journey, extra carriages being very rarely put on. If the weather is good, 
an outside seat {el pescante) is decidedly preferable, as it affords a much 
better view of the scenery along the route. American tourists generally 
take the chances of the weather, and select outside places ; but the native, 
who does not care for the prospect, and desires nothing beyond making 
the journey as speedily as possible, is quite content with the inside {el 
interior). 

Mexican roads are bad, and Mexican carriages are constructed with a 
view to withstanding all the shaking that a rough road can give. The 



68 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



result is tliat at tlie end of a long journey the traveller feels very much as 
though he had been passed through a patent clothes-wringer or an im- 
jjroved threshing-machine. But no such fear troubled our friends, as the 
distance to Jaral was but forty-two miles, and the schedule time for the 
journey seven hours. The road was bad enough, it is true, but the youths 
heeded the advice of Doctor Bronson, and consoled themselves with the 
reflection that it mio'ht have been a 2:reat deal worse than it was. 




ox THE ROAD. 



They had read so much about brigandage in Mexico that the possibili- 
ties of an encounter with highwaymen naturally came into their minds. 
At the first opportunity they asked an American resident of Saltillo about 
the state of the country through which they were to pass, and the liability 
to an unpleasant encounter. 

" There is hardly any danger on this line now," was the reply, " and it 
is a long time since a robbery was committed. There is less brigandage 
in Mexico to-day than there was a few years ago, but there is still too 
much of it to make travelling altogether agreeable. The Government has 
put down the system of robbery as much as possible, partly by capturing 
and killing the brigands, and partly by hiring them to quit the business 
and become respectable citizens." 

".That's a curious way to suppress crime," said one of the youths, " to 



SUPPRESSING BEIGANDAGE. 



69 




70 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

hire a man to be honest, after he has spent a good part of liis life in 
robbery." 

" It doesn't harmonize with our ideas of propriety," said the gentle- 
man, " but it had the desired effect at all events. General Diaz, when he 
became President, induced the robber chiefs to quit the business they 
were in, and enter the service of the Government ; they were pardoned 
for their misdeeds, commissioned as officers in the army, and appointed to 
preserve order in certain districts. Their followers were enlisted as sol- 
diers to serve under their old leaders ; each soldier receives $40 a mouth, 
and furnishes his own horse and equipments. As they know the whole 
country where they are on duty, they have effectually put down brigand- 
age in their districts ; they are the best horsemen in the world, and there's 
no finer body of cavalry anywhere than the Mexican Rurales — the re- 
formed brigands." 

" Doesn't it sometimes happen that they turn robbers temporarily, just 
to keep themselves in practice ?" 

" Yes, they have done so in several instances, but on the whole these 
converted highwaymen have kept faith with the Government very fairly. 
You must remember that brigandage has been a regular occupation for 
centuries, and it cannot be broken up in a hurry. In some ]3arts of the 
country it was organized as a business, and many men who stood well in 
the community were associated with the robbers, and received a percent- 
age of their earnings." 

" Did they take any part in the robberies '?" 

" !Not exactly with their own hands ; but they used to notify the brig- 
ands when valuable trains were to be on the road, and at what time they 
would start ; they acted as scouts or spies, if you please, and in this way 
earned their right to a share of the plunder. 

" I was once captured and carried into the mountains by a party of 
brigands who held me for a ransom. In the old times before Maximilian 
came here, the Mexican brigands simply robbed travellers who made no 
resistance, and killed those who resisted unsuccessfully. Maximilian im- 
ported some Italians, who very soon turned robbers, and affiliated with the 
Mexican bandits ; they taught the Mexicans the Italian trick of holding 
prisoners for ransom, and it was practised very extensively. 

" Well, the rascals carried me off to their retreat in the hills, and made 
me write to ray brother demanding five thousand dollai's as ransom for 
me. They threatened that in case it was not paid by a certain day I 
would be shot, and my friends would receive my head as a j^roof that the 
threat had been carried out. 



EOBBEKS AT HOME. 



71 




72 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



" The letter was delivered by a respectable citizen, who was on friendly 
terms with my brother and myself. I had dined at his house and he at 
mine, and we had had several business transactions. It had been intimated 
that he was friendly with the brigands, and this circumstance j^roved it. 




'S^-* 



^ ^^'^ '^'^M^i^^^^M: 



^^5: 



A KING OF THE ROAD. 



My brother paid the money to him, and I was released and allowed to 
come home. They treated me well while I was with them, but kept a 
guard over me all the time with orders to kill me instantly in case I 
attempted to escape." 

" I suppose they made you promise not to reveal the name of that man 
to the authorities ?" 

" Not at all ; I could have done so, and he would have been tried and 
convicted on the evidence of myself and brother. He would have been 



IN FULL CHASE. 



73 




74 THE BOY TKAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

shot without mercy, but the matter would not have ended there ; the brig- 
ands would have avenged his death and assassinated both of us within a 
week, sure. 

" In some respects the brigands were not so bad as they have been 
painted," the gentleman continued. " The diligence companies have an ar- 
rangement whereby a traveller can buy a letter of credit to pay his bills 
with along the road, instead of carrying money, which would be a tempta- 
tion to robbers. His expenditures are indorsed on the letter of credit by 
the company's agents, or he can draw a few dollars every night upon his 
letter to pay his hotel bill with. But it is necessary to carry some money 
in your pocket to pay the robbers for the trouble of stopping and examin- 
ing you ; if they find absolutely nothing to reward them for their efforts, 
you will very likely be killed as a warning to be more considerate the next 
time you travel. If they should rob you of your letter of credit, you can 
write or telegraph back to the agency where you obtained it, and a tele- 
graphic transfer will be made for the amount remaining. 

" Their usual plan of operations is to rush out suddenly from the road- 
side, and present pistols and guns in the faces of passengers and drivers, 
with a suddenness that prevents resistance. The passengers are ordered to 
alight, hold their hands in the air, then to lie down and place their mouths 
to the ground, and in this attitude their pockets are searched. The brig- 
ands are generally polite but firm, and in the American phrase, ' they won't 
stand any nonsense.' When the examination of pockets is completed they 
order the passengers to lie still for five or ten minutes, perhaps for a quar- 
ter of an hour, and during that time the fellows disappear from sight. If 
no resistance is offered no one is harmed, except once in a while when a 
blood-thirsty brigand kills for the sheer pleasure of it ; but such fellows are 
soon apprehended, and generally they are betrayed by their followers, who 
do not relish the crimes that may be visited on their heads. 

" Sometimes they build a barricade across the road at a place where 
there is a sharp turn, and in the confusion that follows the arrival of the 
coach at the barricade they perform their work. In such cases the robbers 
are concealed in the bushes all along the road-side, and the passengers sud- 
denly discover a dozen or more guns bearing on them at once. Discretion 
is always advisable under such circumstances, and the traveller who is pru- 
dent will surrender his valuables at once. 

"A friend of mine tells a story," he continued, "that illustrates the 
politeness of the Mexican robbers. 

" He was travelling on horseback with a friend and a servant, and fell 
into the hands of a band of brigands whose leader was named Manuel. 



BRIGAND POLITENESS. 75 

The fellows took everything of value that the travellers had, and then the 
chief told the sufferers that he would give them a pass which would save 
them from further molestation. Perhaps he was not altogether disinter- 
ested in so doing, as the exhibition of the pass would save his friends the 
trouble of searching an array of empty pockets and getting nothing for 
their trouble. 

" Thereupon he wrote on a leaf of my friend's note-book something 
like the following : 

" ' Deak Gomez, — This party has been thoroughly examined, and 
we've left them nothing you want. Please allow them to go on without 
delay.' 

" Then he told them where they would be stopped, and was about to 
bid them good-by when my friend suggested that he had nothing with 
which to pay his expenses on the road. Manuel suggested that the trav- 
ellers ought not to want for anything, and immediately gave them five 
dollars, which he placed in a neat pocket-book that he had taken from 
another traveller the day before. They met the other robbers at the 
place designated, and on presenting the pass were not interfered with in 




HOTEL BY THE WAT-SIDE. 



any way. My friend's horse had become lame, and Gomez generously 
gave him a fresh horse, stolen, no doubt, from somebody else, and turned 
the lame steed out by the road-side." 

Other stories of the same sort were told, and the interview ended with 
an account of how the American owner of a line of coaches between Yera 
Cruz and Mexico City, away back in the forties, before the days of the 
railway, made a bargain with the chief of the brigands commanding the 
route, by which, in consideration of an annual subsidy, they were not to 
molest his coaches or passengers. The subsidy was regularly paid, and 
the brigands faithfully regarded their side of the bargain. When General 



76 THE BOY TEAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

Scott was advancing from Vera Cruz upon the capital he made a contract 
with this same American to supply the army with beef ; and through the 
efficient aid of his friends the brigands, he had no difficulty in carrying 
out his contract. They stole cattle from all the haciendas within a hun- 
dred miles of the route and kept him well supplied. 

The road from Saltillo to Jaral follows a picturesque valley, and in the 
forty-two miles between the two places makes a descent of nearly four- 
teen hundred feet. Consequently there was more down-hill than up, and 
the diligence went along in fine style. The driver was an accomplished 
whip, and managed his team admirably. For a part of the way the 
vehicle was drawn by horses ; at the first station mules were substituted, 
and our friends were unable to say which were the better for the work. 
The driver explained that he preferred mules for the reason that in case 
they ran away they would keep to the middle of the road, while horses 
were apt to shy and turn to one side, thereby endangering the safety of 
the diligence and its passengers. This difference between horses and 
mules has been noted by drivers in other parts of the world, and is said 
to be correct. 

The driver had an assistant, whose duty it was to throw stones at the 
leading animals to encourage them to their work. He was a skilled 
marksman and rarely missed his aim. Sometimes he threw the missiles 
while seated on the box at the driver's side, and at others he ran alongside 
the team or kept near the wheels of the coach. In either case the result 
was the same, and the conveyance under his manipulations made good 
progress. 

Crosses at several points on the road showed where travellers had been 
killed by robbers. On all the roads of Mexico these crosses can be seen, 
and on some routes they are painfully numerous. 

At noon a halt was made at a hacienda sufficiently long to enable the 
passengers to have something to eat. They were supplied with chile co7i 
came, a stew of meat and peppers, very hot in two ways, and with the 
ever-present tortillas and frijoles. The jolting over the road, combined 
with the pure air of the Sierras, gave the travellers a vigorous appetite, 
and they heartily enjoyed their road-side repast. The service was some- 
what primitive in character, and reminded our friends of Delmonico's, in 
IN'ew York, solely by its contrasts. 

]^o brigands came to disturb the progress or the minds of the trav- 
ellers, and in due time they reached Jaral and were landed in safety. 
Fred made the following practical note for the information of future 
travellers : 



THE INTEENATIONAL RAILWAY. 



T7 



"The fare between Saltillo and Jaral is $3.T5. Twenty-five pounds 
of baggage may be carried free by each passenger ; for all excess he mnst 
pay seventy-five cents for each twenty-five pounds. There is a daily de- 
parture each way, and sometimes when the business demands it there are 
two departures." 

There was not a great deal to be seen at Jaral, but the youths did not 
waste their time. They devoted themselves to obtaining information 




STREET SCENE AT JARAi. 



about the country to the northward along the line of the International 
and Central railways, and here is substantially what they ascertained : 

" A hundred miles to the north of where we now are is the city of 
Monclova, which was for some time the terminus of the International Rail- 
way. It was the capital of Texas and Cohahuila when they both formed 
one State, before the war which gave Texas her independence. It is the 
centre of a region rich in minerals, and of late years several enterprising 
Americans have established themselves there, and are developing the re- 



78 



THE BOY TEAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



sources of tlie country. Some of the silver ore in the Monclova district is 
so rich that it is sent to the United States and to Europe to be reduced, 




EL REAL DE SANTA EULALIA. 



and the transportation of this ore furnishes a good business for the rail- 
way company. 

" About half-way from Monclova to the American frontier is the town 
of Sabinas, which is the centre of a rich coal region. Mexico is in great 
need of coal, and it is only recently that it was known that she had a fine 
supply of it in her borders. It is found in a large part of the Sabinas 
Yalley. There are extensive mines at Hondo and San Felipe, especially 
at Hondo, whence the}^ are shipping large quantities for the use of the 
railways in this country and Texas, and for the mines in the interior of. 
Mexico. 

" There is an abundance of iron ore near Monclova, not far from the 
railway, and it is proposed to erect extensive iron-works at Sabinas for it& 
reduction. The railways seem to have waked up this sleepy country, and 
if some Eip Yan Winkle of other days could arise and look around him,, 
he would rub his eyes in astonishment. 



CHIHUAHUA. 



79 



" If we had come into Mexico by the Central Railway we would have 
passed through the State of Chihuahua (pronounced s]\e-waw-wa.w) ; but 
we wouldn't have seen much, as the train leaves El Paso in the evening, 
runs through a desolate country, and reaches the city of Chihuahua for 
breakfast in the morning. Mr. Janvier, the author of 'The Mexican 
Guide,' says there is not much to be seen in the city, and advises travellers 
not to stop there. According to his account, it is so overrun by Ameri- 
cans that it cannot be called a typical Mexican town. It has about 20,000 
inhabitants, and no public buildings of importance, with the exception of 




THE RATINE WHERE THE OUTCASTS LIVED. 



the Church of San Francisco, which was built by a tax of one real on each 
pound of silver taken from the Santa Enlalia mines, which are in the vicin- 



80 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




ON THE EDGE OF THE COTTON FIELD. 



ity. Chihuahua was once the centre of a large trade witli the United 
States ; and at one time when the road was dangerous, armed caravans 
were made up periodically, just as they are made, up in Central Asia and 
other parts of the Old World at the present time. 

" The silver-mines of Santa Eulalia are about fifteen miles from Chi- 
huahua, and have the reputation of being among the richest silver-mines 
in the world. The district is fifteen or twenty miles square, and contains, 
or once contained, a good many silver-mines, which turned out fabulous 
amounts of the precious metal. Gen. Lew. Wallace has visited and de- 



SILVER-MINES OF SANTA EULALIA. 



81 



scribed some of these mines, and judging from his account thej must have 
been very rich. According to tradition, there \vas a time when the Keal 
de Santa EulaKa had 7000 inhabitants, and the city of Chihuahua 70,000, 
all living, directly or indirectly, upon the product of the mines. Since 
the Spaniards left Mexico the mines have not been worked as extensively 
as before, and the operations now carried on there are upon a limited 
scale. There is a prospect that some of the old glory of the mines will 
be restored, now that northern Mexico is becoming accustomed to Amer- 
ican ways of mining, and is beginning to adopt them. 

" There is a romantic story concerning the way the mines were discov- 
ered. About the year 1700, three scoundrels who had been driven out of 
Chihuahua went to find refuge among the mountains of Santa Eulalia; 
they must have been a very bad lot to be obliged to seek safety in that re- 
gion, which was infested by the Apache Indians, who were at war with the 
white people, and would have made quick work of killing these refugees 
if they had caught them. How they lived nobody knows ; they were 
obliged to shift their locality from time to time to prevent being found 
by the Indians, and one day they came upon a ravine with precipitous 
sides, where there was a good supply of water, 

" One of the men knew something about silver, and in looking around 
he found a rich deposit of ore. They sent word by a friendly Indian 
to the senior priest in Chihuahua 
that they would show him where 
he could get enough silver to build 
the finest cathedral in the world, 
and would do so on condition that 
he would absolve them from their 
sins, and obtain their pardon from 
the authorities. 

" The bad men were absolved 
and pardoned, and kept their prom- 
ise by showing the way to the 
mines, which were immediately 
opened, and yielded one hundred 
millions of dollars in eighty -six 
years. Enormous fortunes were 
made by the owners ; and there is 

a story that once on the visit of a bishop who was to perform some relig- 
ious service, the owner of one of the mines entertained the holy man at 
his house. He laid a path of silver bricks from his house to the door of 
6 




"cotton is king." 



82 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

the church, and when the bisliop proceeded to the church he walked all 
the way upon solid silver. And the story ends by saying that the owner 
was careful to have the bricks taken up as fast as the bishop lifted his 
feet from them." 

Leaving Jaral a little before noon, our friends proceeded by the south- 
bound train of the International Railway to Torreon, a distance of 130 
miles, which was accomplished in about five hours. At Torreon they 
waited two hours for the train of the Mexican Central Railway, and while 
looking about them the youths espied several car-loads of cotton, which 
were about to leave by a freight train then being made up. 

I^aturally, the sight of the cotton led to an inquiry concerning the 
production of that article in Mexico and the uses made of it. The youths 
learned that cotton is grown in about half the States of Mexico, the 
largest quantity being produced in the State of Yera Cruz, while that of 
Durango ranks next. In the early part of the century about one inillion 
pounds of cotton were exported annually. Down to the time of the inde- 
j)endence of Mexico from Spain, the royal authorities allowed no manu- 
factures in the colony that would be likely to interfere with those of the 
mother-country, and consequently the manufacture of cotton goods was 
prohibited. After independence was secured, factories were built and set 
in operation, and at present the production of cotton is not sufficient to 
meet the demands of the manufacturers. 

The best cotton is grown in the tierra caliente, but the plant thrives 
in the table-land up to an elevation of 5000 feet. According to a Mex- 
ican statistician, the average product is about 2000 pounds to the acre, 
which is more than double the average of the cotton-growing region of 
the United States. 

Torreon and its near neighbor, Lerdo, are the principal shipping- 
points for the cotton grown in Durango. It is probable that the open- 
ing of the railways will stimulate the growth of cotton in Mexico. The 
United States and other cotton-growing countries may look for consid- 
erable exportations of that product from Mexican seaports at no distant 
day. The manufacture of cotton cloth in Mexico is encouraged by an 
import duty on all foreign textiles that does not give much opportunity 
for comjjetition. German and English manufacturers have labored hard 
to convince the Mexicans that they would be greatly benefited by allow- 
ing other countries to do their manufacturing for them, but thus far the 
Mexicans have remained obstinately adhesive to their protective tariff. 

The train left Torreon a few minutes before seven o'clock in the even- 
ing, and consequently but little was seen of the country until the follow- 



FKESNILLO AND CALEEA. 



83 



ing morning. Soon after daylight it reached Fresnillo, an important 
mining town which dates from the middle of the sixteenth century. A 
valuable silver-mine was opened at Fresnillo at that time, but its opera- 
tion was long ago abandoned. Fresnillo is the point at which the two 
sections of the Mexican Central Railway w'ere brought together in 1884, 
and the route was completed for an unobstructed run of the locomotive 
from the frontier of the United States to the capital of Mexico. 




VIEW IN THE MINING REGION. 



Our friends made their toilets in the sleeping-car as quickly as possi- 
ble, and then turned to a contemplation of the s-cenery through which 
they were passing. On each side of the railway there was an extensive 
plain, with a fringe of low mountains forming the horizon. Straight 
ahead lay a range of mountains, which a friendly fellow-passenger said 
was rich in silver and had made the fortunes of Zacatecas and other 
towns. 

They stopped for breakfast at a small town bearing the name of 
Calera, but neither Frank nor Fred could find that it was famous for 
anything, not even for the quality of tlie meals supplied by its restau- 



84 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



rant. Then they rolled on towards Zacatecas, which they reached in 
about an hour after leaving Calera. In approaching Zacatecas the train, 
wound among the mountains in numerous curves and bends, forming 
"mule-shoes" by the dozen, and facing every point of the compass be- 
fore coming to a halt. 

Zacatecas affords a good opportunity for studying silver-mining in 
Mexico, and consequently it had been selected by Doctor Bronson as a 
convenient stopping-place. By advice of the conductor, our friends rode 
in the tramway cars to the hotel, and intrusted their baggage to carga- 
dores, who were more than anxious for employment. The hotel in which 
they lodged was formerly an Augustinian convent, and all the more in- 
teresting for that reason. 




CONVENT AND FOUNTAIN. 



A CITY IN THE MOUNTAINS. 85 



CHAPTEE YI. 

NAME, POPULATION, AND PECULIARITIES OF ZACATECAS. — THE PILGRIMAGE 
CHAPEL.— A WEALTHY CATHEDRAL.— STREET SCENES.— MINES OF ZACATECAS. 
—A DANGEROUS DESCENT.— THE PATIO PROCESS OF REDUCING ORES.- TREAD- 
ING ORE WITH MULES AND HORSES.— A SORRY SIGHT.— THE MINERS; HOW 
THEY LIVE AND WORK.— STATISTICS OF SILVER-MINING IN MEXICO.— ASTOUND- 
ING CALCULATIONS.— FROM ZACATECAS TO AGUAS CALIENTES.— FARM SCENES. 
—FARMING IN MEXICO.— CONDITION OF LABORERS.— MEN AS BEASTS OF BUR- 
DEX.- AGUAS CALIENTES.— A BEAUTIFUL CITY.— A PICTURESQUE POPULATION. 
—WOMEN OF MEXICO. 

" \TTHAT is the meaning of Zacatecas ?" Fred asked while tlie train 
* * was bearing them to the city of that name. 

ISTeither the Doctor nor Frank could answer the question, and so tlie 
desired information was sought from the guide-book. 

It was found that the name was derived from a tribe of Indians called 
Zacatecas, and also from a grass that grows there, and is known in Mexico 
as sacate. It should be remembered that the city is the capital of the 
State of Zacatecas. As it stands in a ravine, where very little grass of any 
kind can grow, it is probable that the appellation, so far as the grass is 
concerned, belongs rather to the State than to the city, which is the centre 
of the silver-mining district. 

The city, which has a population of about 30,000, is anything but at- 
tractive, as its position in a deep ravine makes its streets very narrow, and 
crowds the buildings closely together. Its streets are badly paved, and it 
is so poorly supplied with water that the drains are not properly washed. 
Frank thought it averaged a distinct and different smell for each thousand 
of its inhabitants, and the youths were not surprised to learn that the mor- 
tality, especially among the poorer part of the population, is very great. 
The mountains rise all around and above the city, and the extent of the 
silver business is shown by the large number of buildings on the mount- 
ain-sides, which mark the reduction- works and the entrances to the mines. 

There is a ridge called the Btifa, or Buffalo, overlooking the city ; it is 
the site of a little church, or cliapel, that was built tliere more than a 
century and a half ago, and was at one time a favorite place of pilgrimage. 



86 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



Ordinary of- 
fenders were re- 
quired to do pen- 
ance by ascend- 
ing on foot to 
the door of the 
chapel, and ex- 
traordinary ones 
made the jour- 
ney on their 
knees. The cus- 
tom still pre- 
vails, though less 
than formerly. 
Frank and Fred saw 
several pilgrims 
ig the ascent, but were 
that days, and even 
might elapse before 
' scene of the same 
cssed. 
ers paid a hasty visit to 
Zacatecas, which was for- 
in ornaments : most of 



the cathedra 
merly very 

them were removed at the time of the 
confiscation of the property of the Church 
by the Government, and are not likely 
to be restored. It is said that the bap- 
tismal font was of solid silver, and worth $100,000. The Jesuits have 
on the side of the mountain a fine church, which presents a very 
picturesque appearance and contains some interesting and valuable paint- 
ings. 

The street scenes were much the same as at Monterey and Saltillo, 
with the addition of groups of miners and men employed about the re- 
duction-works, droves of hurros, or donkeys, laden watli ore and other 
things peculiar to the industry of the locality. The youths wished to visit 
the mines and descend to the scene of operations underground, and conse- 
quently were not inclined to devote much time to the public buildings and 
the streets. They observed that the city had sufficient enterprise to be 
lighted with electricity, and to have a telephone, an exchange, and a fire 




A SILTER-PRODCCING YALLET. 



A DANGEROUS DESCENT. 



87 



department, though the scarcity of wooden buildings seemed to afford very 
little use for the latter. 

They were advised not to go into the mines, as the descent must be 
made by ladders which are not constructed like ordinary ones, but are 
nothing more than logs set upright and notched alternately on opposite 




CACTUS GROWTHS NEAR ZACATECAS. 



sides. The miners ascend and descend very nimbly along these rude lad- 
ders, and accidents are rare ; but strangers find them dangerous. 

Frank and Fred were quite willing to take the risk, but the Doctor 
was more prudent, and suggested that they would defer their visit to the 
interior of a mine until they reached one with less liability to mishap. 
But this did not interfere with a visit to one of the reduction-works, for 
which a permit was readily obtained. 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



" Before we make the visit," said the Doctor, " I want you to learn 
what the patio process of reduction is, so that you can see intelb'gently. 
The patio process is in use here, as it is throughout Mexico and South 
America generally." 




FIELD WITH ADOBE WALLS. 



In the hour they had at their disposal, Frank and Fred informed them- 
selves on the subject, and were able to write as follows : 

" The patio process was invented in 1557 by Bartolome de Medina, and 
is so called because a patio, or yard, is required for its operation. The ore 
is crushed and ground tine in arastras. An arastra is a mill where an ani- 
mal, generally a mule, walks in a circle and turns a millstone that rolls 
upon a floor, on which the material to be ground is placed. We have 
seen arastras at work several times since we came into Mexico ; and they 
are not unknown in the south-western part of the United States. 

" If there is any gold in the ore, fifty or sixty per cent, of it may be 
saved by putting silver or copper amalgam into the arastras. Some of 
the Mexican ores must be roasted to remove certain chemicals which they 
contain, but this is not the case with all of them. The paste from the 



EXTEACTING SILVER FROM ORE. 



89 



arastras is spread in heaps on the j&oor of the patio ; after it has hardened 
somewhat by the evaporation of a part of the water it contains, it receives 
a quantity of salt, which is in proportion to the amount of silver in the 
ore. Then it is mixed by men with shovels and by the tread of horses or 
mules, and a day or two later a mixture of copper vitriol and salt is added. 
" Then follows more treading and mixing ; then quicksilver is spread 
over the mass and trodden in, and the next day there is another mixing 
and treading. These performances are repeated on alternate days, quick- 
silver being added one day and the mass being trodden the next, until the 
treading has been repeated seven or eight times. The quicksilver unites 
with the silver and forms an amalgam ; the formation is carefully watched, 
and when it has reached the proper condition the amalgam is gathered up 




A MEXICAN AKASTRA. 



into hide or canvas bags. Some of the quicksilver is squeezed out, and 
the rest is driven off by evaporation and condensed in a pipe that runs 
into a tub of water." 

" There's a good deal more," said Fred, " but I'm afraid if we say too 
much about the process we shall lead our young friends at home to skip 
the whole st(fry. So we've made it short." 



90 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



"You've said quite enough," replied the Doctor, "to give a general idea 
of what the patio process is. Anybody who wants to know more can look 
it up in books on mining, or in cyclopaedias." 

Armed with the information they had obtained, the youths were able, 
to understand intelligently the operations at the reduction-works that they 



-^^ 



'V 



A 






A,^'- 'V:^ I 4 




CARRYING ORE TO THE REDUCTION-WORKS. 



visited. Frank thought they could find a cheaper way of mixing up the 
mass of ore than by treading it out with mules. Doctor Bronson told them 
that methods had been adopted in California and Nevada whereby all this 
work is done by machinery, but they were not generally approved in Mex- 
ico. " The Mexicans," said he, " are slow to change ; they have done their 
work in this way for 300 years, and it is not easy to convince them that 



THE PATIO PROCESS. 



91 



there is anything better in the world. The Americans who buy or lease 
mines in Mexico, and adopt the plans that suit themselves, will afford some 
instruction by example ; the Mexicans may learn by the example, especially 
if they find that the new process enables their competitors to make money 
out of a mine they cannot do anything with." 

In one patio there were 120 horses at work, in gangs of twelve or six- 
teen, treading out the ore. "They are sorry-looking brutes," said Fred, "as 




A MEXICAN CRUSHER. 



tlieir tails are shaved, and their bodies splashed with the black mud through 
which they are walking. To us it looks like ordinary mud, but to the eye 
of the expert I suppose it is altogether different, as we are told that a min- 
ing superintendent can determine almost at a glance how rich the mineral 



92 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

is. Evidently the horses don't know the vahie of what they are treading, 
or they wouldn't look so dejected and forlorn. Horses and mules that are 
old and useless for anything else are bought for this work. The chemicals 
destroy their hoofs, and they do not last a great while. If there were a 
Mexican Henry Bergh he would most certainly try to put a stop to this 
cruelty.* 

" The men who are working among the horses are about as unprepos- 
sessing in appearance as the animals. They wear only a shirt and trousers, 
and both garments look as though cloth was dear when they were planned. 
The trousers come only to the knee, and the sleeves of the shirt do not 
reach the elbow. The men who work in the mines and about the reduc- 
tion establishments are carefully searched on quitting work, to make sure 
that they do not carry off anything of value ; their garments are without 
pockets, and thus they have no places for storing away stolen property. 
But in spite of the absence of pockets, they would manage to steal some 
of the amalgam if they were not so closely watched and carefully searched. 

" In some of the mines, they work with scarcely a thread about them, 
the heat being so great that clothing cannot be borne with ease. The 
miners generally work in small teams or gangs, and receive a portion of 
the ore taken out in addition to their wages, which vary from thirty to 
fifty cents a day. Sometimes the payment is altogether in ore, which is 
sold at auction on stated days. 

" We asked if the miners ever gave trouble by striking, and were told 
that they had not yet become sufficiently Americanized to form themselves 
into labor unions. The people seem to be entirely content with what they 
receive, and as they have very few wants, and do not try to save anything 
from one week to another, it is not likely they will change their ways in a 
hurry." 

" While we are on the subject," wrote Frank, in a letter describing the 
visit to Zacatecas, "we may as well say what we learned about silver-min- 
ing in general throughout Mexico. 

" Silver was known to the Aztecs before the Spanish Conquest, but 
they do not seem to have made much use of it. They worked it into or- 
naments and various small articles, but among the treasures of Montezuma 
seized by Cortez the amount of silver was very small compared with that 

* The youths were evidently unaware that there is a Mexican Society for the Preven- 
tion of Cruelty to Animals. Its headquarters are in the City of Mexico; its president is 
Seiior Vidal Castaneda y Nadal, and its secretary Senor Eduardo L. Gallo. The society 
had done excellent work in preventing cruelty to animals, and in addition to other things 
has caused hull-fighting to be suppressed in several parts of the republic. 



SILVER PRODUCT OF MEXICO. 



93 



of gold. The Spaniards had no idea of the immense vahie of the country 
when they conquered it, so far as silver is concerned." 

" But they began developing the mines very soon after they captured 
the country," Fred remarked. 

"Yes," responded Frank; "in the expedition commanded by Cortez 
there were many men who were familiar with the mines of Old Spain, 
and they were not long in finding the silver deposits of the Il^Tew World. 




BRINGING ORE FROM THE MINES. 



During the sixteenth century the mines of Mexico were extensively 
worked, and the working continued steadily down to the war for indepen- 
dence, when it greatly fell off. At the time of Humboldt's visit, in 1803, 
about 3000 distinct mines were in operation; Humboldt estimated that 



94 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



tlie product of silver in Mexico from tlie Conquest, in 1521, down to 180-4 
amounted to $2,027,952,000, and the estimate since that time brings the 
grand total up to more than 4,000,000,000 !" 

" What a lot of money !" exclaimed Fred. " Suppose we had it, and 
wanted to take it to New York ; how could we carry it ?" 




MEXICAN BELLOWS. 



" Wait a moment," was the reply, " and I'll tell you." 

Frank made a hasty calculation on a slip of paper, and then answered 
as follows : 

" Roughly estimated, the weight of that value in silver would be 333- 
000,000 pounds, or 166,000 tons, estimating 2000 pounds to the ton. If 
we had it in the City of Mexico we would have to engage 416 trains of 
forty cars each, with ten tons of silver in each car, to take it to Yera Cruz. 
From Yera Cruz we would need 166 steamships carrying a thousand tons 
each, to take our precious freight to New York, and I'll let you figure 
out how many warehouses we would need to store it in, and how many 
policemen w^ould be required to take care of it." 

"AVell," said Fred, "there's one thing you've forgotten; remember 
that the most of this silver has been brought from the mines on the backs 
of mules or donkeys. Eeckoning 100 pounds to a load, how many burros 
would be needed to transport our fortune, supposing we had it ?" 

Frank figured again, and found that the silver product of Mexico from 
the Conquest to the present time would load three and a third million 
burros ; putting them in single file, and allowing each burro ten feet of 
space, there would be 631 miles of them, and half a mile or so over. 

"Let's go into the business of silver- mining," said Fred; "just see 



CHANCES FOR FORTUNES. 



95 



what a lot of money has been made by it, and with very crude methods 
of reducing the ore ! With the improved processes of modern times there 
must be a fortune for everybody." 

" I don't know about it," replied his cousin ; " anyway, we'll ask Doc- 
tor Bronson's advice before we venture." 

The appeal to the Doctor resulted in a good deal of sound informa- 
tion, to the effect that silver-mining is generally unprofitable, and any- 
body should think twice before venturing into it. "And so far as the 
Mexican mines are concerned," he said, "there are very few of them that 
are doing more than paying working expenses, and some do not do that. 



>-T 




MEXICAN SMELTING-FURNACE. 



Fifty or more American companies are engaged in this country at pres- 
ent ; a few have made money, but the majority have not yet received 
back what they put into their enterprises, or any interest upon it. And 
unless I am misinformed, it is next to impossible to buy a good mine 
here; if a Mexican has a mine he is willing to sell, you may be pretty 
sure it isn't worth buying. The same rule holds good in all mining 
regions the world over, and is hardly necessary to discuss. The mining 
laws of Mexico require that the owner of a mine must work it for four 
consecutive months in each year, with four regular miners, under penalty 



96 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



of forfeiture. Unless he comj)lies with this law the mine becomes the 

property of the Government and is sold at auction. 

" The laws of Mexico formerly prohibited foreigners not naturalized, 

or provided with special licenses, from owning or working mines ; but this 

provision was repealed, and foreigners may now legally acquire mines in 
any part of the republic, provided one of the partners 
in each mining company resides in Mexico." 

From Zacatecas our friends proceeded in the direc- 
tion of the capital, their next stopping-place being at 
Aguas Calientes, 120 miles farther south and nearly 
2000 feet lower in elevation. Zacatecas is 804i feet 
above sea-level, while Aguas Galientes is 6179. 




AN OLD-FASHIONED PLOCGH. 



For the first part of the journey the railway winds among the hills; 
then it comes out into a rich and comparatively level country, where 
great quantities of corn, wheat, barley, and wool are produced. The 
plains and hill-sides were dotted with flocks of sheep, and the numerous 
fields showed that the land was favorable to farming industries. 

Farming in Mexico is in a backward condition, the implements being 
mainly of the primitive type. American ploughs, harrows, mowers, reap- 
ers, and other farming implements and machines have been introduced, 
as already mentioned, since the advent of the railways, but the Mexican 
laborer does not take kindly to their use. 

It is said that on the haciendas where improved farming implements 
and machinery have been introduced they have been maliciously de- 
stroyed or put out of working order by the peons; their hostility to 
labor-saving inventions is just as great as that of the same class of people 
in other parts of the world. During the construction of the railways 
some of the contractors brought a supply of wheelbarrows, to replace the 
gunny-sacks with which the peons have been from time immemorial 
accustomed to carry earth on their backs or heads. Being made to un- 



STORIES ABOUT INDIANS. 



97 



derstand that they must use the wheelbarrows instead of the sacks, they 
tilled the vehicles with earth and carried them on their heads. The con- 
tractors were obliged to return to the use of the gunny-sack, as they 
found more work was done with it than with the wheelbarrow. 

The. Indians living in the neighborhood of the cities come down from 
their homes in the hills, bringing on their backs large baskets filled with 
garden vegetables, 
chickens, and other 
marketable things. 
The story goes that 
when an Indian from 
the hills has sold his 
burden, he puts a 
stone weighing fifty 
j)ounds or more in 
his basket, in order 
to give him a "grip" 
with his feet on the 
ascending road which 
leads to his home. 

The agricultural 
laborers of Mexico 
are not an enterpris- 
ing race, and care 
nothing beyond sup- 
plying their daily 
wants. They were 
formerly held in a 
condition of slavery, 
both before and af- 
ter the Spanish Con- 
quest ; but slavery 
was abolished soon 
after the war of inde- 
pendence, and there- 
fore the agricultural 
laborers, miners, and 

all other classes of working-people, for the last fifty years and more, have 
been free. The miners are said to be better workers than the farm-hands, 
as they are not migratory in their habits, and generally spend their lifetime 

7 




FARM-LABORER IN A GRASS CLOAK. 



98 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




HACIENDA NEAR THE CITY. 



in the places where they were born, unless comj)elled to go elsewhere in 
search of employment. 

Before the Conquest beasts of burden were unknown, and everything 
that had to be transj)orted was moved by human muscle. The priests im- 
ported donkeys to take the jDlace of men in carrying burdens, and from 
the animals thus introduced the present race of burros is descended. Cat- 
tle, sheep, horses, and hogs were brought from Spain previous to the im- 
portation of donkeys, which did not make their advent until the eigh- 
teenth century. Horses, cattle, and mules in great number are raised in 
Mexico annually, but the stock-growers do not pay much attention to other 
animals. 

The foregoing was learned by Frank and Fred during their ride from 
Zacatecas to Aguas Calientes, and therefore this is its proper place in the 
narrative. 

" There must be a hot spring where we are going," said Fred, " as 
aguas calientes means ' hot waters.' " 



HOT SPRINGS AND BATHING-HOUSES. 



99 



" You are right," replied the Doctor ; " there are hot springs in the 
city and all through this region, and the baths of the city are famous, like 
most hot baths, for their beneficial effects in rheumatism and other dis- 
eases." 

Of course a hot bath was one of the things to be sought, and the trav- 
ellers found it without difficulty. There was a bathing establishment in 
the city, but they were advised to shun it and visit the suburban baths, 
which were easily reached by the tram- way. The temperature of the wa- 
ter is 106° Fahrenheit, and the supply is abundant. The baths, combined 
with the general beauty of the place, have made Aguas Calientes a popu- 
lar health resort, and with the improved accommodations that are sure to 
follow the advent of the railway the popularity will increase. 




PRISONERS AT WORK IN THE JAIL. 



100 



THE BOY TKAVELLEES IN MEXICO. 



" It's the prettiest city we have seen since we came into Mexico," 
wrote Frank in his note-book — "prettier than Monterey, Saltillo, or any 
other of our halting-places. It abounds in gardens, and the people seem 
to have a passionate fondness for flowers, if we may judge by the ex- 
tent to which they cultivate them. 
Around the city the country is 
fertile, and there are finely culti- 
vated fields, luxuriant vineyards, 
rich meadows, and everything to 
please the eye. It is said that 
artists have a special liking for 
this place, and now that I've seen 
it I'm not at all s»rj)rised. 

"Whoever laid out this city 
had an eye to the picturesque, and 
realized that land was plenty, as 
he gave it one large plaza and ten 
smaller ones, and adorned several 
of the plazas with gardens. Then 
there are some fine buildings be- 
longing to the Government. There 
are thirteen churches, a hospital, 
and a college ; and I must not for- 
get that there is a jail, which is 
well patronized, and is said to be 
very attractive for a jail. "We have 
been through the market, which is supplied with more fruit than we have 
seen since we left Monterey, together with several varieties that we have 
not observed elsewhere. 

"They have a population of about twenty-five thousand here, and 
the chief industry is in manufacturing. They make cloth of various 
kinds, including some fine woollens, and we have seen handsome work in 
leather and some very pretty pottery. Everybody we've talked with says 
that it's a pity it is not the time of the annual fair, which lasts from the 
23d of April to the 10th of May, and brings in a large number of people 
from the surrounding country. There are many curious costumes and 
customs to be seen during the fair, which is a period of feasting for all 
who attend it. Mr. Janvier says it resembles our Thanksgiving, as every- 
body then lives upon cacones, or turkeys. The festival is of very ancient 
date, and was held before the advent of the Spaniards. 




OF SPANISH BLOOD. 



WOMEN OF AGUAS CALIENTES. 



101 



" In such a beautiful city we have looked for beautiful inhabitants, 
but haven't found a great many, though it is proper to say we haven't 
been able to hold a review of the whole population. While walking in 
one of the gardens we saw several pretty girls of Spanish blood, accompa- 
nied by their duennas ; for, according to Spanish custom, no young girl is 
allowed to walk out alone. They were dressed much after the fashion of 
Paris or ISTew York, except that they wore the lace veil or mantilla over 
their heads, instead of the bonnet, which is the fashion with us. Their 
taste seems inclined to gaudy colors, derived perhaps from the luxuriance 
of nature around them. 

" The lower classes of the people are much more picturesque than the 
upper, and the women more so than the men. Their skins are dark, and 
their hair and eyes are invariably 
black. They keep their teeth white, 
and are said to do so by a vigorous 
application of the juice of the soap- 
plant. A piece of the stalk of this 
plant is chewed until it forms a sort 
of brush : it contains a soapy juice 
that has cleansing properties benefi- 
cial to the teeth. Many of the young 
women are pleasing to look upon, but 
they are said to lose their good looks 
before reaching middle life, for the 
reason, no doubt, that they have to 
do a great deal of hard work. Their 
dress is a cheap calico, short in the 
skirt and generally bright in color, 
with a loose jacket or waist. If their 
heads are covered, it is with the re- 
hozo chiqtdto, a scarf of silk or cotton 
that is wrapped around the head and shoulders, and has a long fringe, 
which falls down the back. The rebozo is very convenient for carrying 
a baby, who is suspended there exactly as babies are carried in Japan." 




INDIAN GIRLS AT A SPRING. 



102 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



CHAPTEE YIL 

SOUTHWARD AGAIN.— CROSSING A BARRANCA.— BARRANCAS IN MEXICO.— LAGOS 
AND ITS PECULIARITIES.— LEON, THE MANUFACTURING CITY OF MEXICO.— 
SILAO.— ARRIVAL AT GUANAJUATO.— A SILVER CITY.-THE VALENCIANO MINE. 
—AN UNHEALTHY PLACE.— BAD DRAINAGE.— A SYSTEM OF RESERVOIRS.— THE 
CASTILLO DEL GRENADITAS.— AN INDIAN'S ARMOR.— EXPERT THIEVES.— STEAL- 
ING A GRINDSTONE.— MARKET SCENES.— HEADS OF SHEEP AND GOATS.— SCHOOLS 
AT GUANAJUATO.— EDUCATION IN MEXICO.— DOWN IN THE RAYAS MINE.— 
SIGHTS UNDERGROUND.— AN INDIAN WATER-CARRIER.— HOW A SKIN IS TAKEN 
WHOLE FROM A PIG.— THE REDUCTION HACIENDA.— MR. PARKMAN'S MACHINE. 
— QUERETARO.— THE HERCULES AND OTHER COTTON-MILLS. 

SATISFIED with a day at Aguas Calientes, the party took the south- 
bound train, and did not stop until reaching Silao, after a run of 
130 miles. An hour or more after leaving Aguas Calientes^ they crossed 
the barranca, or caiion, through which the Encarnacion Eiver flows ; the 
bridge by which they crossed it is built of iron, and is more than 700 feet 
long. It is fully 150 feet above the water, and the view as one looks 
downward from the centre of the bridge is apt to cause dizziness to a 
nervous traveller. 

"Perhaps you don't know what a barranca is," wrote Frank, in his 
next letter to his mother. " Well, it's a deep channel which the water 
has worn in its steady flow for thousands of years through the earth or 
soft rock. The channel of Niagara Eiver from the falls to Lewiston may 
be called a barranca, and so may any similar cutting made by a stream, 
whether large or small. Some of the Mexican barrancas are 2000 feet 
wide, and 1000 or 1500 feet deep ; their sides are almost precipitous, and 
every year the waters wear a deeper way through the rock or earth. 

" Did you ever walk through a field, and come suddenly upon a ditch 
or brook that was not visible a few yards away ? Well, that's the case with 
some of these barrancas. You come upon one without being aware that 
you are near it ; you may be galloping along enjoying the fresh air and 
the pleasure of a ride, when all at once your horse stops, and as you draw 
the reins you find yourself on the edge of a precipice, looking down hun- 
dreds of feet, perhaps, to the turbid stream struggling along its course. On 



CEOSSING A BARRANCA. 



103 



the other side of the barranca the country is level again, and you could 
gallop on without trouble but for the yawning chasm that stands in your 
way. 

" The barrancas are crossed by descending to the stream along a sIojd- 
ing road built with great ingenuity and at much expense ; the stream is 
passed by an ordinary bridge, and the high ground is reached again along 
another sloping road. Barrancas have long been a serious obstacle to the 




A DRY BARRANCA. 



construction of wagon-roads in Mexico, and in recent years they have 
taxed the ingenuity of railway engineers who sought to pass them." 

The first important city on the route was Lagos, which has a popula- 
tion of 25,000 or thereabouts, and is devoted to manufacturing; farther 
on is Leon, which is four times as large, and five or six times more impor- 



104 



THE BOY TEAVELLEKS IN IVIEXICO. 



tant, as it is the principal manufacturing city of the republic, and was 
founded about 1550. Formerly there was a great fair held at Leon annu- 
ally for the sale of goods ; it was similar to the great fairs of Europe be- 
fore the invention of the railway, but has dwindled in importance as the 
railways have come in, and will probably be abandoned before many years. 




CHURCH OF SAN DIEGO, GUANAJUATO. 



" What do they make at Leon ?" one may ask. For answer, Fred or 
Frank will tell you that they make pretty nearly every kind of article 
that finds a market in Mexico and can be fashioned by Mexican hands. 
There are numerous tanneries there, and the leather which they produce 
is made into boots, saddles, harnesses, leggings, and other things into 
whose composition leather enters. There are factories for the manufact- 
ure of cotton and woollen cloth, serapes, rebozos, and the like ; there are 
large shops where hats are made of every Mexican style and kind, and sent 
to all parts of the republic ; and there are soap factories, iron f ounderies, 
cutlery establishments, tool-shops, and so on through a long and possibly 
tiresome list. And it is safe to say that a popular vote of the inhabitants 
of Leon would show an overwhelming majority in favor of a protective 



GUANAJUATO AND ITS HISTORY. 



105 



tariff. Leonites are firm believers in protection to home industries, and 
look frowningly on any movement to supplant their goods with those of 
foreign make. 

About seven o'clock in the evening the train reached Silao, whence 
there is a branch fifteen miles long to Guanajuato, or rather to Marfil, its 
suburb. It was nearly nine o'clock when they reached the hotel at Guan- 
ajuato ; there was not much to be seen in the evening, and so the time 
was passed mostly at the hotel, and devoted to a consideration of the 
history of the place. The youths found that the site of Guanajuato (pro- 
nounced GwRTi-si-what-.o) was given by one of the early viceroys to Don 
Rodrigo Yasquez, who was one of the conquerors who came with Cortez ; 
the gift was a reward for Don Eodrigo's services in assisting to add this 
valuable possession to the crown of Spain. According to tradition, the 
discovery of silver was made here by accident some time in 1548, and it 
immediately brought a crowd of adventurers in search of fortunes. For 
a long time Guanajuato was one of the most productive silver districts of 
Mexico ; but since the Spanish domination ended, the product has greatly 
diminished ; the yield at present is about $6,000,000 annually, and there 

are said to be 
something like 
2000 mining 
claims in the 
district. 

The most 
famous mine 
of Guanajuato 
is that of San 





COURT- YARD OF A MEXICAN TENEMENT-HOUSE. 



106 



THE BOY TEAVELLEES IN MEXICO. 




superintendent's house at silver reduction-works. 



Jose de Valenciano, and it is said to have yielded in the days of its pros- 
j)erity about $800,000,000 worth of silver. When Humboldt visited it at 
the beginning of this century he estimated that it produced one-fifth of 
the silver in the world. It was " in bonanza," as the miners say, for about 
forty years after it was opened, and paid enormous dividends to its own- 
ers in spite of the heavy taxes exacted by the Government. From ten to 
twenty thousand people were employed in and around the Yalenciano mine 
when it was in full operation. The galleries, chambers, and drifts of the 
mine are said to be more extensive than all the streets of the city, and the 
great ti7'o, or central shaft, is nearly 2000 feet deep. All the lower part 
of the mine is now filled with water, and it cannot be removed except at a 
cost so great that nobody is willing to undertake it. The veta tnadre, or 
" mother-vein," on which the mine is located is pierced by several other 
mines, and many persons believe that Guanajuato has " seen its best 
days." 

Doctor Bronson arranged for his party to visit one of the mines where 
the process of working could be seen ; his application to the adminis- 
trador, or director, of the mine that they wished to see was courteously 



SIGHTS OF GUANAJUATO. 



lor 



received, and the desired permission granted at once. Fred will tell the 
story of the excursion. 

" While waiting for the pass from the administrador," said Fred, " we 
took a look at the city, which has a population variously placed at from 
iifty to seventy thousand, mostly dependent on the mines for their sup- 
port. The city stands in a ravine, and reminded us of Zacatecas. All the 
world over, mining towns are almost always in mountain ravines or val- 
leys, and Guanajuato is no exception to the rule. 

" The streets are narrow, and badly paved with cobble-stones, and lo- 
comotion with carriages is not at all easy. The little stream that flows 
through the city is foi'med into three reservoirs at the upper end of the 
ravine, one above the other. "When 
the upper reservoir is filled, the 
water overflows into the next be- 
low, and that in turn fills the lower 
one. From the water thus collected 
the city and the mills below it are 
supplied. When the rainy season 
begins, the floodgates are open, and 
the waters rush in a torrent through 
the ravine and wash it thoroughly. 
This is the only washing it gets 
until another year comes around ; 
and you will understand from this 
that .Guanajuato is a very 'smelly' 
city, and has a large death-rate. 
There isn't water enough for a 
good, healthy system of sewerage ; 
but this does not trouble the Mex- 
icans very much. 

" In every Mexican town or city 
we have visited thus far, we have 
seen women at the plaza and fount- 
ains and encountered troops of don- 
keys carrying water. Water-carriers have no occupation here, as the Kquid 
is supplied through pipes, just as in l^ew York or any other American city. 
The concession to establish water-works was given to an enterprising citi- 
zen. Senior Eocha, and he made a good deal of money by the operation. 
He built walks and seats all around the reservoirs, and thus gave the inhab- 
itants an agreeable ^^56(9, or promenade. 




A TON OF SILYER. 



108 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



" Our guide showed us the Castillo del Grenaditas, which is an im- 
mense building like a fortress, and now used as a carcel, or prison. It 
was built in the early part of this century as a storehouse for grain for 
public use in times of scarcity ; its walls are several feet thick, and it has 
a large court-yard in the centre. It was a place of refuge for the Span- 
iards when Hidalgo made his pro- 
nunciamento in 1810 and set up a 
' : revolution. Several hundred Span- 

iards fled to the Castillo and shut 
themselves in. They made a vigor- 
ous defence, and the attacking force 
was steadily repelled. Hidalgo tried 
many times to reach the gates, but 
every time his men attempted it they 
were shot down. 

"At last an Indian, carrying a flat 
stone on his back as a shield against 
the Spanish bullets, reached the gates 
and set them on fire. The stone 
which he used in this exploit was 
shown to us, at least one that pur- 
ported to be the identical shield. The 
besiegers rushed in through the gates, 
and the castle fell. A year or so af- 
terwards Hidalgo was captured and 
executed in Chihuahua. His head 
and the heads of three of his companions were brought here and hung on 
hooks at the four corners of the building. They were taken down and 
buried with high honors in 1823, but the hooks are still in position ; the 
one on which Hidalgo's head was placed was pointed out to us. 

" At almost every step along the streets we were accosted by men who 
had all sorts of articles for sale. Shoes, clothing, spurs, cutlery, rebozos, 
scrapes, and similar things w'ere offered, and the prices seemed very low ; 
but we were told not to offer more than half what was asked for anything, 
and unless we really needed it we had better be careful about offering any- 
thing at all. 

" "VVe were cautioned to be watchful of our pockets, as there are expert 
thieves in the city who could steal anything for which they set out. We 
saw some grindstones in one of the shops, and asked our guide why they 
were chained to the wall and the chains fastened with padlocks. He said it 




A MEXICAN BEGGAR. 



HOW THE POOR LIVE. 



109 



was because there were men around who would steal them on general prin- 
ciples. They had no use for them, nor any idea what they were for, but 
as they were the heaviest articles to be seen, they were supposed to be the 
most valuable ! 

"In the market we saw that the poor people of this mining city are 
compelled to be very economical. When meat is not disposed of fresh, it 
is dried and sold in that shape. The dried heads of sheep and goats were 
piled on the ground to be sold as food ; dried with the skin and horns on, 
and the people stood around and haggled for them down to the fraction of 
a cent. An important article of food here is boiled calcibazas, or pump- 
kins; and another staple of diet is gruel made of coarse corn-meal. The 




OLD CONTENT NOW USED AS BARRACKS. 



guide said the head of a sheep or goat or the nose of a bullock was added 
on Sunday to this very meagre diet, and the miners and their families were 
quite contented with such food. Truly, one half of the world doesn't know 
how the other half lives. 

" We were invited to visit one of the schools, but hadn't time to do so 
any more than to look at the building as we went past it. A gentleman 



110 



THE BOY TEAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



whom we talked with told us that the State college is in a flourishing con- 
dition, and has upwards of three hundred students, many of them of pure 
Indian blood. Education among the people of Mexico is not very far ad- 
vanced, but is better than many people suppose. It has made great prog- 
ress in the last twenty years. Before that time it was very backward, and 

a considerable part of the popu- 
lation could not read or write. 

" The Government seems to 
be thoroughly awake to the ne- 
cessity of having its population 
intelligent, in order to advance 
the interests of the country. In 
all the towns and villages there 
are free schools supported by 
the Government or by the lo- 
cal authorities, and in the cities 
there are advanced schools and 
colleges and a great number of 
private schools. Then there are 
technical and industrial schools, 
where trades are taught, and 
military schools for those who 
desire a military education and 
intend entering the army. In 
the cities free night schools for men and women, similar to the night 
schools of Jfew York and other American cities, have been established. 
Some of them are well attended, but that is not the case with all. 

" All of the Mexican States make liberal appropriations for public pri- 
mary schools, and they tell us that last year there was an aggregate school 
attendance of 500,000. There must be an equal number of pupils in the 
private schools and in schools maintained by churches, missions, and be- 
nevolent societies, so that the whole attendance may be set down as an even 
million. Of course this is not up to the standard of the United States, 
especially of the northern portion, but it is a great advance for Mexico, 
where forty years ago not one person in ten could read. It is believed 
that fully one-half of the Mexican people to-day can read and write, or 
certainly a large proportion of them. 

"Accompanied by our guide we drove to the Eayas Mine, or rather 
quite near it. The adrainistrador met us at his office near the entrance, 
and assigned to us a guide who spoke English, though not very well. His 




A LEADING CITIZEN. 



AN UNDERGEOUND PROMENADE. 



Ill 



English was better than our Spanish, and as he seemed to prefer it, we did 
■ not try to talk to him in his own tongue. We expected to descend by a 
cage in the tiro, but found that the way to the vein was down a stone stair- 
case. The steps were slippery in places, and we had to be careful about 
placing our feet, as any carelessness might result in a fall. Frank began 
to quote the old Latin lines about faoilis descensus, but our guide said 
'chestnoot,' which he said he learned from an American, and Frank had 
nothing more to say on the subject. 

"We had a long and tiresome walk through the mine, and the dim 
light of the lantern and candles only served to make the darkness visible 
until our eyes became accustomed to it. When we reached the vein we 




PRISONERS BREAKING ORE. 



were unable to distinguish the rich ore from the worthless rock in which 
the mineral lay, and soon made up our minds that we were as far as possi- 
ble from being experts in mining. 

" It was well for us that we laid aside our own clothes and put on some 
garments especially intended for the underground excursion, as we were 
splashed from head to foot with mud when we came out, and were sorry- 
looking spectacles for a photograph gallery. Each of us had a candle 
stuck to the top of his hat by a lump of wet clay. Every little while one 



112 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




SLOPING LADDERS IN A SILVER MINE. 



of us knocked o2 his candle, and then there was a halt until it was ad- 
justed. 

" We saw many of the peons at work, each with a candle fixed in his 
hat, the fashion that has prevailed here since the mines were first opened. 
Sometimes they were in little groups, who put their earnings into a gen- 
eral pool, and sometimes they were 
working singly on spots allotted to 
them by the superintendents. The 
guide told us that the men worked on 
shares, half the ore taken out being 
the property of the owners of the 
mine, and half going to the peon. 
The ore is placed in heaps. The 
shares of the miners are sold at auc- 
tion or private sale, or they may be 
reduced and the proceeds turned over 
to the proper claimants after taking 
out the cost of the reduction. The 
miners generally prefer the system of 
direct sales, for the reason that they 
can more readily obtain their pay in 
this manner than by waiting for the reduction of the ore and extraction of 
the silver. 

" The hardest part of the work seemed to be the carrying of the bags 
of ore up the long flights of slipjDcry steps to the mouth of the mine. 
From the lower levels the water is removed by pumping, and in some 
places it is carried in pig-skins on the backs of naked Indians to where the 
pumps are at work. A pig-skin filled with water on the back of a man 
climbing up the sloping steps looked at a little distance like some strange 
animal which has not yet been assigned a place in natural history. These 
skins have the exact shape of the pig, and are without cut or seam, and 
we naturally wondered how they were obtained so nearly whole as they 
seemed to be. We had seen them before in the Mexican towns, as they 
are in common use by the water-carriers, and one day we asked an Amer- 
ican resident how they skinned pigs in Mexico. 

" 'Why,' said he, 'it's easy enough when you know how. They don't 
give the pig anything to eat for a couple of days ; then they tie him to a 
tree by his tail, hold an ear of corn about three feet in front of his nose, 
and so coax him out of his skin.' 

"Another man told us that the body of the animal is beaten with a 



SILVER ep:duction-mills. 113 

club till the bones are smashed to pieces, and tlie flesh reduced to a pulpy 
mass, which is then drawn out through the neck, along with the fragments 
of bone. This seems more probable than the other process ; at any rate, we 
give it the preference." 

From the mine our friends went to one of the reduction haciendas, 
where they saw the process of extracting silver from the ore, which has 
been described on previous pages. There are about fifty reduction-mills 
at Guanajuato, some worked by horse or mule power, others by water, and 
others by steam. Three kinds of crushers are in use, the Mexican arastra, 
the Chilian mill, and the American stamp-mill, all of which have their ad- 
vocates, who prefer them to the others. The patio process is employed 
liere as well as elsewhere, and hundreds of horses and mules are annually 
worn out in treading the ores. An American named Parkman made an 




OPENING A NEW MINE. 



improvement on this system by rolling a loaded barrel over and tlirough 
tlie mixture by means of horses or mules walking in a circle, as in an old- 
fashioned cider-mill. The barrel mingles the ore and the chemicals as well 
as the horses' feet could do it, and the injury to the hoofs of the animals 
is prevented, as they do not come in contact with the mass. Sometimes 
heavy wheels are used instead of the barrels, and they are arranged on a 
graduated scale, so that they move slowly from centre to circumference 
of the torta, or pulp heap, as they revolve, and from circumference back 
to the centre again. In this way the entire surface is gone over ; the re- 



lU 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



duction of the mass takes from, twenty to thirty days, and is thoroughly 
done. 

From the hacienda they were taken to the mint, where silver coins are 
made in the same manner as in mints in other parts of the world. The 
machinery of the mint is of English construction, and several Englishmen 



s^^ 




ENTRANCE OF A MINE NOT IN 0PI;RATI0N. 



are or were connected with the establishment to superintend the more del- 
icate parts of the apparatus. From the mint they went to a hill called the 
Cerro de San Miguel, which gave them an excellent view of the city and 
the hills that surround it. The number of elegant residences in sight con- 
vinced them that there is yet a great deal of wealth in Guanajuato, not- 
withstanding the decline in the yield of silver from the mines. 

The next stop in the journey towards the capital was made at Quere- 
taro, eighty-five miles from Silao, or one hundred from Guanajuato. It 
is a city of from fifty to sixty thousand inhabitants ; it has no mines on 
which to base its prosperity, but is devoted to manufacturing, having been 
famous for 200 years and more for its production of cotton goods. The 
largest cotton-mill in Mexico is at Queretaro ; it is known as the Hercules, 
and stands in a ravine, about two miles from the city. It was built by 



PKODUCTS OF THE COTTON-MILLS. 



115 



Senor Eubio, is enclosed by a high wall loop-holed for nmsketrj, and could 
stand an ordinary siege very fairly, provided the besiegers brought no can- 
non. A defensive force of forty soldiers is maintained at the mills, and 
they are armed with rifles and howitzers. 

The Hercules mill employs about fifteen hundred operatives, all Mexi- 
cans, with the exception of a few foreigners to look after the general man- 
agement of details and keep the machinery in order. Not far from it is 
a smaller and older mill, which is surrounded with pretty gardens that re- 
quire a considerable annual expenditure to keep them in order. Frank 
tliought he would commend the plan to American mill-owners, and sug- 
gest the addition of gardens to their establishments ; Fred was of opinion 




that the manufacturers of Lawrence and Fall Eiver would not look favor- 
ably upon the suggestion, as they were much more interested in making 
the best possible showing in their bank accounts than in beautifying their 
surroundings. 

The Queretaro mills are chiefly employed in turning out manta, a vari- 
ety of cheap cotton cloth, out of which the garments of the lower classes 
of the population are made. The Hercules mill makes 6000 pieces of 
cloth thirty yards long every week, and it pays the weavers about one cent 
a yard. The employes make from two and a half to five dollars weekly, 
and are furnished with lodgings, at very low rentals, close to the mills. 
They work from 6 a.m. to 9.30 p.m., with half an hour's intermission for 
breakfast, and an hour for dinner. 



116 



THE BOY TEAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



CHAPTER YIII. 

AQUEDUCT AT QUERETARO.— THE RESULT OF A BAXTER.— THE HILL OF THE BELLS. 
—PLACE AVHERE MAXIMILIAN WAS SHOT.— REYOLUTIOXS IX MEXICO.— FOREIGX 
INTERVEXTIOX.— MAXIMILIAN BECOMES EMPEROR.— THE "BLACK DECREE."— 
WITHDRAWAL OF FRENCH TROOPS FROM MEXICO.— MAXIMILIAN'S DEFEAT, CAPT- 
URE, AND DEATH.— HOW A FRENCH NEWSPAPER CIRCUMVENTED THE LAWS.— 
PRONUNCIAMENTOS.— JUAREZ AS PRESIDENT.— THE ABRAHAM LINCOLN OF MEX- 
ICO.— A WONDERFUL PROPHECY.— PERSONAL APPEARANCE OF JUAREZ.— RELIG- 
ION IN MEXICO.— FORMER POWER OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH.— THE LAWS OF 
THE REFORM.— PROTESTANT CHURCHES AND PROTESTANT WORK.— MISSIONARY 
MARTYRS.— MURDER OF REV. J. L. STEPHENS.— RELIGIOUS AFFAIRS AT PRESENT. 

OJ^E of the first things to attract the attention of the youths was the 
aqueduct by which Queretaro is supplied with water. They learned 
on inquiry that it was built by one of the citizens at an expense of half a 
million dollars ; tlie story goes that it was the result of a banter between 




AQUEDUCT OF QUERETARO. 



him and another wealthy Mexican, one offering to supply tlie city with wa- 
ter if the other would build a shrine and saint of solid silver. The offer 
was accepted, and the agreement carried out by both parties. 

The water comes from a mountain stream five miles from the city, and 



THE STOEY OF MAXIMILIAN. 117 

is brought through a tunnel, and afterwards along a series of arches, some 
of which are ninety feet high. It was finished in 1738, and has ever since 
supplied Queretaro with an abundance of water. 

The most interesting sight of Queretaro is the Cerro de las Campanas, 
or Hill of the Bells, and thither our friends proceeded as soon as thej had 
partaken of the mid-daj meal, which was i^ead j on their arrival at the hotel. 
There is a fine view from the hill, and they greatly enjoyed it ; but they 
were more interested in the spot where the last Mexican empire came to 
an end. Three black crosses mark the place where Maximilian and his 
generals, Miramon and Mejia, were shot on the morning of the 19th of 
June, 1867. This was the last scene in the drama of the imperial mon- 
archy which Louis IN^apoleon sought to found in ISTorth America at the 
time of the American Civil War. 

Frank and Fred had already familiarized themselves with the history 
of Maximilian's career in Mexico. Frank had committed a portion of the 
story to paper, and with Fred's assistance it was completed during their 
stay at Queretaro, and mailed homeward with their next batch of letters. 
Here it is : 

" From the time Mexico established her independence of Spain down 
to 1860, there was a bitter hostility between the two parties into which 
the influential portion of the population was divided — the Conservative or 
Church party, and the Liberals. The Conservatives represented the Cath- 
olic Church, whose religion was brought to Mexico by the priests that ac- 
companied Cortez and sought to convert the people from paganism. They 
succeeded in great measure, and as long as the Spaniards were in power 
the Church was in full control. It possessed a great part of the wealth of 
the country; the most moderate estimate is that one-fourth of all the 
property in the country belonged to the Church, and some authorities say 
that the proportion was far greater. 

" When independence was established, the Liberals began active oppo- 
sition to the Church party, and the country was hardly ever at peace from 
one end to the other. Revolutions followed each other with great rapidi- 
ty. Several Presidents were not allowed to enter upon the duties of their 
office at all, and the first President to complete the full term for which he 
was elected was Benito Juarez. Historians are not agreed as to the num- 
ber of revolutions that have taken place in Mexico ; but it is safe to say 
that they were not fewer than thirty-six in the limit of forty years, most 
of them being accompanied by bloodshed. In that period there were no 
less than seventy - three rulers, nearly all of them exercising very brief 
authority, and some none at all. 



118 



. THE BOY TliAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



iiijiiiii 




|^vV^^\f/^ 




vi l.f''^'F 



LIBERAL AND CHURCH PARTIES. 119 

"As time went on, the hostility of the Church and Liberal parties to 
each other grew more and more bitter, till it culminated in the War of the 
Reform, between 1855 and 1858. In 1859 President Juarez proclaimed the 
famous Laws of the Reform, which forbade priests to appear in public 
wearing their robes of office, suppressed the monasteries and convents, 
and gave the property of the Church to the Government. The value of 
this property is said to have been more than $300,000,000. The Liberal 
army captured the capital city six months after the proclamation of these 
laws, and they were immediately put in operation, and with great severity. 

" The country was deeply in debt, and in 1861 the Liberal Congress 
passed a law suspending payment of the interest on its foreign debt. This 
gave England, France, and Spain an excuse for sending a naval and mili- 
tary force to Mexico ; they captured Yera Cruz, and then an arrangement 
was made which caused the withdrawal of England and Spain ; but France 
remained, and was evidently determined to conquer the country. The 
French advanced towards the capital, which they captured June 9, 1863. 
There were 40,000 French troops in Mexico, and they were joined by a 
Mexican force which was in the interest of the Church party. 

" In July a congress of Mexican notables proclaimed that the Govern- 
ment of Mexico should be an hereditary monarchy, under a Catholic prince, 
and offered the crown to Maximilian, brother of the Emperor of Austria. 
Maximilian accepted the offer, and came to Mexico with his wife, Carlotta ; 
they arrived in July, 1864, and were crowned Emperor and Empress of 
Mexico, in the great cathedral of the capital city. The Emperor selected 
Chapultepec as his imperial residence ; a fine avenue was laid out from 
the castle to the city, trees were planted, streets were improved, and for a 
short time it seemed as if peace and prosperity were coming to Mexico. 

" Juarez was still President of the Republic ; he and his army were 
driven far to the north, but they continued to fight, and in October, 1865, 
Maximilian signed an order which became known as the ' Black Decree,' 
condemning all Republican officers captured in battle to be shot as brig- 
ands. Many of them, including several generals and colonels, were shot 
accordingly, and this act exasperated the people. 

" The American Civil War had ended ; the United States Government 
put 60,000 troops along the western frontier of Texas, and then intimated 
that the French forces must be withdrawn from Mexico. The diplomatic 
correspondence lasted six months, and our Government threatened armed 
intervention unless the French troops were recalled. They were with- 
drawn ; Maximilian had no foreign support, and his own army could not 
cope successfully with the Republican forces. Juarez, with his army, ad- 



120 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



vanced towards the south, and the Imperial army inarched to meet him, 
and was defeated. A Republican army, under General Diaz, captured 
Puebla, and put the Imperialists to flight. 

" Carlotta went to France, and vainly besought Louis Kapoleon to con- 
tinue his aid and keep a French army in Mexico. Then she asked the 




A MEXICAN CAVALRY SOLDIER. 



Pope to exercise his influence, and finding that was of no use, she became 
hopelessly insane. Maximilian started for the coast, intending to leave 
the country ; unwisely for himself, he changed his plans, and joined Gen- 
eral Miramon at Queretaro, where there were 5000 Imperial troops. Que- 
retaro was besieged by 20,000 troops, under General Escobedo ; the siege 



CAPTUEE AND DEATH OF MAXIMILIAN. 



121 



lasted two months, and ended on the 15th of May, when the key of the 
position was captured, and tlie Emperor and his army surrendered. The 
Emperor was taken on tlie Hill of the Bells, the very spot where he was 
afterwards shot by order of the court-martial which condemned him to 
death." 




A MEXICAN INFANTRY SOLDIER. 



" A very concise history of the events of that time," said Doctor Bron- 
son, when Frank paused in reading their joint j)roduction ; " have you any- 
thing more to add to it ?" 

" Yes, sir, we have," was the reply. " We have thought that the story 
of the court-martial, and the last days and hours of Maximilian, would be; 
interesting, and ought to form a part of our narrative." 



122 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

"• That is quite right," the Doctor answered, " and if you have not fin- 
ished it I will hear it some other time." 

On a subsequent occasion Fred presented the following, which was 
heartily approved by Doctor Bronson as deserving a place in the narrative 
of their journey through Mexico : 

" Maximilian was condemned to death on account of the ' Black De- 
cree,' and the officers who had carried out his orders were sentenced to 
the same fate. The wife of General Miramon went to San Luis Potosi 
to intercede with President Juarez for her husband's life. The Princess 
Salm-Salm went at the same time to do a similar service for Maximilian. 
The princess, in the account of her interview, says : ' I saw the President 
was moved ; he had tears in his eyes, but he assured me in a low, sad 
voice, "I am grieved, madame, to see you thus on your knees before me, 
but if all the kings and queens of Europe were in your place, I could not 
spare that life. It is not I who take it, it is the people and the law ; and 
if I should not do its will, the people would take it, and mine also." ' 

. " Miramon's wife told a similar story about the wish of the President 
to be merciful and reprieve her husband. She says he was wavering when 
his Minister of Foreign Affairs said, ' It is to-day or never that you will 
consolidate the peace of the republic' Then the President told her as 
gently as he could that it was impossible to grant her request. 

" The Government of the United States asked that Maximilian's life 
be spared, and the Emperor of Austria sent a similar request, but all to no 
purpose. On the morning of the execution Maximilian rode in a coacli 
with his confessor from the prison to the Hill of the Bells, and Miramon 
and Mejia, Math their confessors, followed in another coach. An adobe wall 
had been built up for the occasion, and the three men were placed in 
front of it, and about ten paces from the firing party. Maximilian held a 
crucifix in his hand, and looked intently upon it as the order to fire was 
given. The President caused the remains of the ill-fated Emperor to be 
carefully coffined, and they were sent home to Austria for interment in 
the Imperial vault of the Hapsburgs. 

" President Juarez entered the city of Mexico on the 15th of July, 
less than a month after Maximilian's death, and carried with him a train 
of provisions for the relief of the suffering inhabitants. Great leniency 
was shown to all who had served under Maximilian ; nineteen of the offi- 
cers who had committed crimes or deserted from the Republican army 
were shot, others were imprisoned, and some were ordered to leave the 
country under pain of imprisonment in case they returned. The rank and 
file of tbe soldiery were sent to their homes or incorporated into the na- 



AN INCIDENT OF THE WAR. 



123 



tional army, and the President did everything in his power to bring peace 
to the country ; and since that time Mexico has been a peaceful land com- 
pared with what it had been for the preceding forty years." 

When Fred completed the reading of his story Doctor Bronson said 
he was reminded of an incident that happened at the time of the execu- 
tion of Maximilian. 

" I was in Paris," said he, " when the news came that the execution 
had taken place. The French papers were not allowed to make any com- 
ment upon the affair, except to execrate it and denounce the Mexicans in 




LINE OF DEFENCE HELD BY MAXIMILIAN DURING THE SIEGE. 



the bitterest terms. Louis J^Tapoleon would have caused the immediate 
suspension of any paper that nttered a word in sympathy with the acts of 
Juarez. 

" One of the liberal papers managed very skilfully to get around the 
prohibition. It printed the telegram announcing that Maximilian had 



124 ' THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

been sliot by order of a Mexican court-martial, and directly beneath the 
telegram it printed the 'Black Decree' of October, 1865, to which you 
have alluded, and with it two letters written by Maximilian's victims just 
before they were led to execution. The decree and the letters were cop- 
ied from the French official newspapers, and therefore they could be 
printed without risk of interference. There was not a word of editorial 
comment, nor was any needed." 

" We said there had been j)eace in Mexico since the fall of the Empire," 
continued Fred, " but our words deserve to be qualified. There have been 
disturbances at different times and in various parts of the country. In 
1871 there was something that almost threatened civil' war in the shape of 
a pronunciamento by General Diaz, and for a while things had a serious 
aspect. General Diaz did not like the election of Juarez for a third time ; 
he proposed an assembly of notables to reorganize the government, and 
that he (Diaz) should be commander-in-chief of the army until the assem- 
bly had done its work. This would have been practically equivalent to 
making him President, but the whole scheme was ended by the sudden 
death of Juarez in July, 1872. 

"Lerdo de Tejado then became President, and for three years every- 
thing was peaceful. Then came another revolution, which drove Lerdo 
from the capital and installed Diaz in the Presidential chair. At the end 
of liis term Diaz was succeeded by General Gonzales, who was a poor man 
when he became President, and a very rich one when he left the office. 
He left it peaceably, and was succeeded, December 1, 1884, by Diaz, who 
has shown himself a man of ability, and has managed the. affairs of the 
country very creditably. 

"There you have Mexican history boiled down," said Fred. "Per- 
haps it may be tedious to some of the boys at home, and if it is, they 
know how to skip." 

The conversation that followed this reading naturally turned upon 
Mexican affairs. Doctor Bronson signified his readiness to answer any 
questions the youths might ask, or, if he did not know the correct answers, 
he would try to tell them where the desired information could be obtained. 

"President Juarez was a native of Mexico, and not of Spanish descent, 
was he not?" Frank asked. 

" Yes," said the Doctor ; " he was a full-blooded Indian, his parents 
having been people in very humble circumstances. He has been called 
the "Washington or the Lincoln of Mexico ; to him Mexico owes the Laws 
of the Peform and the concessions that have brought railways into the 
country and opened it up to commercial relations with the rest of the 



PEN POKTEAIT OF PRESIDENT JUAREZ. 



125 



world. He was the first Protestant President of the country, all his pred- 
ecessors having been of the Catholic faith. He is described by those who 
knew him as a man rather below the average height, stoutly built without 
being corpulent, exceedingly plain in dress, but always fastidiously neat. 
Ordinarily he wore a dress-coat of black broadcloth, with other garments 
to match, and on state occasions he substituted white gloves and cravat 
for the every-day black ones. He used to ride in a plain coach, with no 
liveried servants, which was quite a contrast to the grand turnout of Max- 
imilian, who had a state 
carriage like that of 
Louis XIY. 

" His complexion 
was Indian, and so 
were his features; his 
eyes were small and 
black, and his face, 
which was always 
clean-shaven, bore an 
expression of great 
firmness. He was not 
talkative, and was the. 
same determined, si- 
lent man in prosperity 
as in adversity. His 
faith in the success of 
the republic was never 
shaken, even when he 
was living in an adobe 
hut on the banks of 
the Eio Grande, with, 
less than 500 follow- 
ers, and a reward offered by Maximilian for his head. When he arrived 
at El Paso del Norte he was accompanied by only twenty-two friends, who 
have since been called ' the immaculate.' 

" I have read somewhere," * continued the Doctor, " a curious story 
connected with his history. When Mexico was conquered by the Span- 
iards, a priest of the Aztec temple at Taos, in N"ew Mexico, kindled a fire 
upon its altar, and planted a tree in front of the edifice. He prophesied 




FIRST PROTESTANT CHURCH IN MEXICO. 



* In " Our Sister Republic," by Albert S. Evans, p. 305. 



126 



THE BOY TKAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



that when the tree died a new white race would come from the East 
and conquer the land, and when the fire went out a new Montezuma 
would arise and rule Mexico. The tree died in 1846, during our war 
with Mexico, and the fire went out when the last of the Aztec priests of 
Taos died, in the year that Juarez became President." 




PUKBLO AT TAOS, NEW MEXICO. 



"Was he ever imprisoned or banished, like the most of the leading 
men of Mexico?" Frank asked. 

" Yes," was the reply. " He was a native of the State of Oajaca, where 
he was educated in a seminary and studied law ; he graduated with high 
honors at the college, and for some years held the cliair of natural philos- 
ophy in that institution. In 1836, when he was thirty years old, he was 
imprisoned by the Conservatives on account of his Liberal principles. After 
his release he became Chief-judge of the Republic, and held several other 
offices until 1853, when he was imprisoned and banislied by General Santa 
Anna, and lived two years in the United States, suffering severe privations. 
Events brought him into Mexico again, and from that time he did not 
leave the country nntil his death. He was imprisoned a third time, in 
1857, by Comonfort, but only for a short while." 

" We have mentioned the Laws of the Reform, which were proclaimed 
by President Juarez and caused the appropriation of the property of the 
Church by the Government. Did the Church have much property besides 
the convents, cathedrals, and Church buildings generally ?" 



CONFISCATION OF CHURCH PROPERTY. 



127 



" A great deal more than those," tlie Doctor answered. " The Church 
owned real estate in vast extent both in the cities and the rural districts, 
and some people say more than half the dwelling-houses in the city of 
Mexico belonged to it. It had the reputation of being a very generous 
landlord, as it rented its houses at a lower rate than similar property 
could be had from private owners. On this subject I will quote from an 
English writer who spent some time in Mexico a few years ago." 

Thereupon Doctor Bronson read the following from " Mexico To-day," 
by Thomas IT. Brocklehurst: 

" 'The CLiurch of Mexico has been all-powerful since its commencement; it may be 
said to be the Government, the magistracy, the army, and the master of the homes. Every- 




GAKDEN OF A MP:XICAN CONTENT. 



128 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



thing in Mexico has been subservient to its dictatura. The priesthood has been entirely 

f ree'f rom the national courts of law, they have had courts of their own, and the fueros, or . 

privileges of the ecclesiastics, placed them entirely beyond the reach of secular power. 

They fevied taxes and tithes of everybody and everything they had a mind to. The ex- 
tent to which the 
clergy accumulat- 
ed wealth is al- 
most incredible ; 
they are said to 
have possessed 
three - fourths of 
the whole proper- 
ty of the country, 
i consisting of lands 
3 and other real es- 

a 

M tate, rents, mort- 

„ gages, conventual 

B buildings, and 

jf church ornaments. 

§ Moreover, there 

3 were no bankers 

:^ in Mexico except 

g the clergy, so they 

S had complete pow- 

EH er over the estates 

5 as well as the souls 

o 

a of the people. 

I '"InlSoOScii- 

§ or Lerdo de Te- 

S jara. Minister of 

1 Public Works, 
p^ published a statis- 
° tical account of 

2 the revenues and 
H endowments of 

the Church, with 
the numbers of 
the clergy, monks, 
nuns, and servants 
connected with the 
religious establish- 
ments. The details 
he gives, like the 
evidence of the 
existino- churches, and the remains of the disused ones all over the country, quite support 
his stat'ement that the Churcli was possessed of three-fourths of the property of the State.' 

« Another writer," continued Doctor Bronson, " says that the property 
of the Church included about 900 rural estates and 25,000 blocks of city 




SALE OF CHUKCH PROPERTY. 



129 



property. When this property was confiscated and sold, the Church au- 
thorities warned all good Catholics not to invest in it. The result was 
that it went at very low prices, and fell into the hands of those who 
cared nothing for the religion of the former owners. The Church people 
probably see by this time that they made a mistake. Had they allowed 
Catholics to buy the confiscated property, they could have got it back 
again into their own hands witli very little trouble, and at a small valua- 
tion. Dwelling-houses, shops, and all sorts of ordinary buildings, along 




REV. JOHN L. STEPHENS, A MARTYR MISSIONARY. 



with the rural estates and the convents, have been sold for secular pur- 
poses, but the church edifices proper are permitted to remain in the hands 
of their former authorities, and services go on there without interruption. 
The Laws of the Reform allow freedom of religious worship, and a Cath- 
olic has the same protection as the adherent of any other faith." 

" "Were there any Protestant churches in Mexico before the Laws of 
the Reform were proclaimed?" Fred asked. 

" ISTo," was the reply ; " the Catholic Church did not permit them to 
9 



130 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



exist any more than the Puritans allowed a Quaker in their midst in tlie 
early days of the Plymouth Colony. Human nature is the same all the 
world over, and any religious body that has supreme control of a country 

is pretty certain to exercise its power. 
You know the old explanation of the 
difference between religion and supersti- 
tion ?" 

" What is that ?" 

" Religion is what we believe ; super- 
stition is what others believe." 

The boys laughed, and said they had 
heard the definition before. Then the 
Doctor continued : 

"The Laws of the Peform tolerated 
all religions, and guaranteed freedom of 
public worship. During the Mexican War 
our army was followed by colporteurs, 
W'ho distributed tracts and did other relio;- 
ious work. They followed the example 
of the priests who accompanied Cortez, 
but, unlike them, they did not succeed in 
converting the population. Missionary 
work was begun by the American Bap- 
tists in 1863, and followed shortly after 
by the Methodists, Congregationalists, and 
Presbyterians. There was much opposi- 
tion on the part of some of the priests, 
and in several instances their ignorant followers were incited to hostility. 
You must remember that the Mexican priests are not as intelligent, taken 
as a body, as the Catholic priests of the United States ; and understanding 
this, you will not wonder at the open hostility displayed towards all other 
forms of religion. 

" In the early days of the Protestant missions the missionaries in Mex- 
ico entered upon their duties at the risk of their lives. In 1872 a mis- 
sionary and his wife settled in Guadalajara. During the first few weeks 
of their residence in the place they were stoned whenever they appeared 
on the streets. The Governor came to their aid, and in time the prejudice 
against them wore away. In IN^ovember of the same year another mission- 
ary, Rev. John L. Stephens, settled in Ahualuco, a town of five thousand 
inhabitants, ninety miles from Guadalajara, and began his work. On the 




IN THE CATHEDRAL. 



GROWTH OF PROTESTANT CHURCHES. 



131 



2d of the following March, at two o'clock in the morning, his house was 
attacked, and he was murdered with a brutality which could not have 
been excelled by Apaches or Sioux. One of his converts was killed at the 
same time, and others barely escaped with their lives. 

"There have been other martyrs, and many cases of persecution. Hos- 
tility has not ceased, but it is greatly diminished, and the Protestants have 
obtained a foothold in Mexico. There are 
not far from 300 Protestant congregations in -,^ ', 
the country, wuth 15,000 communicants and J 

30,000 adherents. There are about 100 for- -r 

eign missionaries, many of them accompanied 
by their wives ; as many more ordained na- 
tive ministers ; and twice that number of un- 
ordained native helpers. There are many 
day, Sunday, and theological schools, which 
have been established by the missionaries ; 
and there are printing establishments, which 
are sending out religious matter for all who 
are willing to read it. There are more than 
fifty church edifices, some of them built ex- 
pressly for the purpose, the others being old 
structures altered for Protestant use." 

In closing this talk on religious matters, 
Doctor Bronson remarked that it would take 
many years for the quarrels between the 
Church party and the Liberals to come to an 
end ; but in the mean while Mexico would 
continue on her progressive way, and all 

her friends, of whatever creed, would be encouraged to hope for the best 
results. 




^^__^^ 



MEXICAN PRIESTS. 



132 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



CHAPTER IX. 

FROM QUERETARO TO THE CAPITAL.— PLAIN OF THE CAZADERO.— TULA.— THE 
GREAT SPANISH DRAINAGE-CUT.— DISASTROUS INUNDATIONS OF MEXICO CITY. 
—A PUZZLE FOR ENGINEERS.— ARRIVAL AT THE CAPITAL.— HOTEL LIFE.— RES- 
TAURANTS, AND THE MODE OF LIVING.— AMUSING STORIES OF HOTEL MAN- 
AGEMENT.— i^OA'Z)^^ AND FOWDITAS. — MEN FOR CHAMBER-MAIDS.— ^Z- 
MUERZO.—A MORNING STROLL ALONG THE STREETS.— WOMEN ON THEIR WAY 
TO MASS.— THE MANTILLA.— SELLERS OF SACRED THINGS.— DEALERS IN LOT- 
TERY TICKETS.— LOTTERIES RUN BY GOVERNMENT.— ATTENDING A DRAWING. 
—HOW THE AFFAIR WAS CONDUCTED.— FLOWER-SELLERS. 



F 



ROM Queretaro to the City of Mexico is a distance of 150 miles. 
The route of the railway lies through a region which is excellent 
both for agriculture and stock raising. Frank and Fred wished to stop at 
one of the cattle haciendas, but the Doctor said they would have an oppor- 
tunity to see one of these establishments at a later date; so they continued 
to the capital without making a halt after leaving Queretaro. 




-LEVEL OF THE CITY OF MEXICO 
"l-ake TEZCOCQ 

COMPARATITK LEVEL OF LAKES. 



They crossed the plain of the Cazadero, which obtains its name from 
an incident of the Conquest. About the year 1540 the Indians organized 
a great cazadero (hunt) on this plain, to show their good-will towards the 
first viceroy, Don Antonio de Mendoza. A great number of them assem- 
bled, and the game was driven in from all directions and duly slaughtered 
by the viceroy and his friends. Hunts of this sort arc of very ancient 
date ; they are practised by aborigines in all parts of the world, and even 



PLAIN OF THE CAZADERO. 



133 










civilized man does not disdain 
thera. Of the civilized class are 
the kangaroo hunts in Australia, 
elephant hunts in Ceylon and 
India, and the chase of wolves 
and other noxious animals in the 
Western States of North America 
and in the Siberian provinces of 
Kussia. 

At the edge of the plain of 
the Cazadero the train reached the foot of the mountain chain that sur- 
rounds the valley of Mexico. The locomotive breathed heavily as it 
ascended the slope dragging its burden behind it. The speed was mate- 
rially reduced from that by which the plain had been traversed, and the 
reduction showed very plainly that the grade was steep. Every turn in 



THE GREAT SPANISH DKAINAGE-CUT. 



134 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

the road gave a picturesque view, and the youths thoroughly enjoyed their 
ride towards the famous valley. 

The top of the ascent was reached at Tula, of which we shall have 
something to say later on. Then the train entered a gorge, which Frank 
and Fred specially wished to look at. It was the Tajo de Xochistongo, 
the great Spanish drainage -cut, which was intended to save the city of 
Mexico from inundation. 

From the windows of the car they shuddered as they looked into the 
cut, and wondered if never an accident had happened from the falling 
away of the earth. The cut is twelve and a half miles in length, and is 
the work of human hands, not of nature. The railway enters the valley 
of Mexico through this cut, and the track is laid on a shelf or bench along 
its sides and high above the bottom. Our friends visited it a few days 
later, and we will here include Frank's account of what he saw and heard. 

" The city of Mexico stands in a valley which has no outlet, the water 
that accumulates from the rains being evaporated by the heat of the sun 
or absorbed in the volcanic soil. The city is in the lowest part of the val- 
ley, and is therefore liable to be overflowed whenever the evaporation and 
absorption are not sufficient to carry off the water that accumulates. 
There are several lakes that cover a tenth part of the area of the valley. 
The lowest of them is salt, as it has no outlet, but the others which dis- 
charge into it are fresh. This salt lake is called Tezcoco. It has an area 
of seventy-seven square miles, and its surface ordinarily is only two feet 
lower than the level of the Plaza Mayor, or great square of the city. In 
the days of the Aztecs the lake surrounded the city, but it is now three 
miles away from it, owing to the recession of the waters. Lake Chalco is 
three and a half feet higher than Tezcoco; while Zumpango, the most 
northerly of all the lakes, is twenty-nine feet higher than the Plaza Mayor. 
The lakes are separated by dikes, some of which were built by the Aztecs 
before the arrival of the Spaniards, but the greater number are of more 
recent construction, as we shall presently see. 

" Now, it is evident that an unusual flood of water could raise Tezcoco 
so that it would flood the city, and this is what has happened on Ave dif- 
ferent occasions— in 1553, 1580, 1604, 1607, and 1629. The last inunda- 
tion continued for five years, and caused an immense amount of suffering 
and loss. The city was covered to a depth of three feet, and the waters 
were finally carried off by an earthquake, which allowed them to run away 
through the crevices that it formed. 

" Here's where we come to the history of the great cut of l^ochistongo. 
The Spanish Government consulted all the celebrated engineers of the day, 



DEAINING THE VALLEY OF MEXICO. 



135 



and they presented numerous plans for draining tlie city and Iceeping it 
out of danger from inundations. Enrico Martinez presented the plan 
which was adopted. It was to drain Lake Zumpango so that its waters 
would not be poured into Tezcoco, but would run to the Gulf of Mexico 
by way of Tula. For this purpose he proposed to make a tunnel through 
l^ochistongo, to carry oif the superfluous water of Zumpango, or, rather, of 
the river Cuatitlan, which flows into it. 

" The tunnel was commenced in November, 160Y, but when completed 




YOUNG GIRLS OP TULA. 



136 THE BOY TEAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

it was found insufficient to drain the lake, and a new plan was needed. A 
Dutch engineer was then brought in, and he naturally proposed a system 
of dikes, similar to those of his own country and the dikes already built 
by the Aztecs. He was allowed to carry out his scheme until the arrival 
of a new viceroy in 1628. The new viceroy would not believe the accounts 
which he heard of the floods that had occurred, and he ordered Martinez 
to stop up the tunnel and allow the waters to take their original course. 
He was soon convinced of his error, and ordered the tunnel to be reopened. 
It was reopened and continued in use until the following June, when Mar- 
tinez found that it was being destroyed by the pressure of the water, and 
he therefore closed it to save it from ruin. A disastrous flood followed, 
and this was the one that lasted five years." 

" How did the people get around in that time ?" Fred asked. 

" They were forced to use boats," was the reply ; " but the getting about 
was the least part of the trouble caused by the flood. Most of the houses 
were of adobe, and these soon crumbled and fell. The loss was so great 
that the Spanish Government ordered the site of the city to be changed to 
higher ground, but on representations by the City Council of the value of 
the permanent structures which would thus be rendered useless, the order 
was countermanded. The city was restored after the subsidence of the 
waters. It has been threatened several times since, but though it has been 
in great danger the cut and the dikes have saved it." 

" But how about the making of the tunnel into a cut ?" 

" They put Martinez in prison as soon as the flood came, and he was 
kept there for several years. Then it was determined to change the tun- 
nel into a cut, and he was released and put in charge of the work. It 
took 150 years to make it, and though nominally finished in 1789, it has 
never been entirely completed. Thousands of Indians died during the 
work of digging this enormous ditch. It was the greatest earthwork of 
its time, and in fact the greatest down to the cutting of the Suez and Pan- 
ama canals. Here are the figures : 

" Length of the cut, 67,53,7 feet ; greatest depth, 197 feet ; greatest 
breadth, 361 feet. The original tunnel of Martinez was four miles long, 
eleven and a half feet wide, and fourteen feet high. Portions of the old 
tunnel, or rather of its ruins, are visible to-day. There is a monument to 
the memory of Martinez, which was erected a few years ago in one of the 
public squares of the capital city ; it might possibly console him for his 
five years in prison if he could only come around and look at it." 

As Frank paused. Doctor Bronson took up the subject and said that 
even with the waters of Zumpango drained away there was still a liability 



PKESENT PLANS FOE DRAINAGE. 



137 



of the overflow of the lower lakes. He added that numerous projects had 
been proposed. Some engineers were in favor of drying up Tezcoco alto- 




ENVIRONS OF MEXICO. 



gether by turning away the waters that flow into it ; others advised drain- 
ing the waters into a lower part of the valley, if such conld be found ; and 
others again proposed a long and large tunnel through the mountains at so 



138 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

low a level that Tezcoco and the city conld be thoroughly drained. To 
this should be added a canal from the upper lakes to flow through the city 
and wash out its sewers. 

"What will be done about it no one can safely predict," the Doctor 
remarked. " The city is badly drained, its sewage is only partially carried 
away, and such of it as the water removes is accumulated in Lake Tezcoco, 
which is becoming dirtier and more shallow every year. No plan has been 
proposed that has been pronounced successful, or to which there is not a 
serious objection. Of course almost anything could be done with unlim- 
ited money, but Mexico, like other cities and countries, has a limit to the 
amount that might be expended for any given purpose." 

The smells that greeted the nostrils of the youths on their arrival at 
the capital convinced them that the drainage of Mexico is little better than 
no drainage at all. Fred remarked that if it were anywhere else than in 
the very high region where it is (7602 feet above the sea), it would have 
no need of drainage, as all the inhabitants would die of pestilence. 

Emerging from the famous earth-cutting, our friends had their first 
view of the snowy peaks of Popocatepetl and Iztaccihuatl, the great vol- 
canoes which lie to the east of the city of Mexico. They had read and 
heard much of these famous mountains, and had formed many mental 
pictures of them. To the credit of the volcanoes, it is proper to say that 
they fully came up to the expectations which had been formed of them. 

The train sped on over the comparatively level region of the valley. 
For several miles the Mexican Central Kailway lies parallel to the Mexi- 
can National line, and. as there happened to be a train on the other track, 
the passengers had the exhilaration of a race as a concluding feature of 
their journey. 

They had left Queretaro a little before noon ; it was seven o'clock in 
the evening when the train rolled into the Buena Yista station outside 
the city, and the journey over the Mexican Central Railway cam^ to an 
end. 

Doctor Bronson had telegraphed for a courier from the Hotel del 
Jardin to meet them at the station, and the man was there in accordance 
with his request. The key of one of the trunks was given up to meet the 
requirements of the local custom-house, after the manner of the octroi of 
Paris and other Continental cities. Our friends had found this regulation 
at all the towns where they had stopped on their route, but the trunks 
had invariably been passed without being opened, on the assurance that 
they contained no merchandise. 

The Hotel del Jardin proved to be quite satisfactory, so far as the 



LIFE IN THE MONASTEEIES. 



139 



rooms were concerned, but there was not much to be said in favor of the 
supper to which the travellers sat down, after removing the dust from 
their garments and making them- 
selves generally presentable. The 
boys ascertained on inquiry that the 
hotel was built around the garden of 
an old convent, and that a portion 
of it was really the convent edifice. 
Some of the rooms are the former 
cells of the monks, and the youths 
concluded that the monks were very 
comfortably lodged. 

If all stories, or even a quarter ; 
of those that are told, are true, the 
Mexican monks had an easy life of 
it whenever so inclined. I*»[o one 
doubts that there were many honest 
and conscientious men among them, 
but there is also little, if any, room 
for doubt that a great many men 
entered the monasteries with hardly 
a spark of religious feeling about 
them, solely for the purpose of get- 
ting a living without working for it. 
The number of idlers among them 
was fully equal to the proportion 
to be found in tlie ministry of the 
Church of England. A union of 
Church and State, whether Protest- 
ant or* Catholic, is certain to develop 
a large number of adherents, who 
live in idleness at the expense of 
others, and bring discredit upon hon- 
est and zealous workers. 

During their stay in the city of 
Mexico our friends found that it Avas 
the better plan not to stipulate to 
take their meals in the hotel where 

they had their rooms. They breakfasted, dined, and supped wherever they 
pleased, and found the arrangement very satisfactory. In this way they 




A MEMBER OF THE CHURCH PARTY. 



140 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

tried all the restaurants, from the most pretentious to those of the second 
and third grades, and found the experiment an interesting one. Here are 
Fred's notes upon hotel life in the capital : 

"We have visited all the hotels, and find them pretty much alike. As 
far as we can ascertain, we could not improve our condition by changing 
from the Hotel del Jardin, and so have concluded to stay where we are. 




TRANSCONTINENTAL PROFILE OF MEXICO. 



We have dropped somewhat into the fashion of the country — you know 
we always do so when it is at all possible — but not altogether. We rise 
about six in the morning, and have chocolate and a roll or two at seven, 
and then we go out sight-seeing, shopping, or write letters until eleven, 
when we have almuerzo, which is a solid meal corresponding to the 
French dejeuner a la fourchette. So far we are in the line of the Mexi- 
cans ; this is their only solid meal, and late in the day they have chocolate 
and some light refreshment just before going to theatre or opera. We have 
so long been accustomed to at least two meals a day that we take a second 
one similar to the almuerzo somewhere about six o'clock. They tell us 
that it would not have been easy to obtain this second meal ten or fifteen 
years ago, but so many foreigners have come here of late that the restau- 
rants are accustomed to it, especially those patronized by foreigners, 

" They tell some funny stories about the hotel customs here. One is 
that the advance agent of an excursion party went to a hotel and asked 
the price of rooms, 

" ' Two dollars a day,' was the reply, 

" ' I have a party of sixty people,' said the agent ; ' what terms will you 
make V 

"'It will be two dollars and a quarter a day for each one,' said the 
landlord ; ' sixty people will make a great deal of trouble.' 

" Another story was told by a gentleman who came to the city some 
years ago and met a friend who had arrived one day before him. They 
left together, and when they came to settle their bills the one who came 
first, and had been there fourteen days, was charged for two weeks, at 
ten dollars a week, twenty dollars. The other was charged two dollars 



MEN AS CHAMBERMAIDS. 



141 



per day for thirteen days, twenty-six dollars. He protested, and in reply 
to his protest the landlord explained that when a patron was there four- 
teen days or more he was allowed weekly terras, but under fourteen days 
he must pay by the day. ' Stay here another day,' said the landlord, ' and 
your bill will be twenty dollars.' 

" ' Yery well,' the stranger answered ; ' I'll hold my room till to-mor- 
row, but as I have the money in my hand I may as well pay you now.' 

" The landlord accepted the money, made out a bill for twenty dollars, 
and receipted it. But when he found the gentleman was really going 
away immediately, he protested that the stranger would not be entitled to 
weekly rates unless he actually occupied his room that night ! 




INTERIOR COURT-YARD OF A MEXICAN HOTEL. 



" All the chamber-maids here are men ; we have an Indian mozo to 
look after our rooms, and have not seen a woman about the house since 
we came here, either as house-keeper, chamber-maid, or laundress. On 
each floor there is a mtichacho, M^ho takes charge of the keys and is sap- 
posed to be responsible for the safety of our belongings ; and I'm glad to 
say we have lost nothing during our stay. The mozo and muchacho both 



142 



THE BOY TKAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



expect a financial remembrance, and so do tlie waiters in the restaurants. 
Their expectations are very reasonable, and they receive their gratuities 
with a quiet dignity that is far preferable to the manner of the attend- 
ants of hotels and restaurants in London or Paris. 

" The almuerzo, which I mentioned as the heavy meal of the day, is 
so important that the business houses and banks close from noon till half- 
past two or three o'clock, when everybody is taking breakfast, dinner, and 




STREET VIEW IN THE CAPITAL. 



supper all in one. It is necessary to transact in the forenoon any business 
that you have to do, as it is not at all certain that men will get back to 
their oflSces again in the afternoon. The leisurely ways of the Mexicans 
are not at all satisfactory to the impetuous citizen from the Northern 
States of the Union. 

" The prices of the restaurants seem to us not much, if any, behind 
those of Europe and of New York and Chicago. The tahle-cV hote dinner 
at the best restaurants is one dollar, and sometimes more ; but we have 
found a restaurant, the Cafe Anglais, where the head-waiter speaks Eng- 
lish, and the manager seems to be specially desirous of attracting Ameri- 
can custom. At this restaurant the charge is one real for the seven 



MEXICAN EESTAUEANTS. 



143 



o'clock breakfast of chocolate and bread, and five reals for the eleven 
o'clock breakfast ; dinner is five reals ; and all three of the meals are fur- 
nished for thirty dollars a month, or one dollar a day. Of course we do 
not want board by 

the month, nor to ii 

go among Americans, 
whom we did not 
come here to see ; we 
have been eating Mex- 
ican dishes at \h&fon- 
das, and for four reals 
have had excellent 
meals. Ifonda means 
restaurant, 2cc\^fondi- 
ta means cafe ; fonda 
also means hotel, and 
a hotel for travellers 
only. There is an- 
other kind of hotel or 
inn, for horned cattle 
and horses as well as 
for human beings ; es- 
tablishments of this 
kind are called one- 
S07ies or posadas.^' 

Bright and early 
on the morning fol- 
lowing their arrival 
the youths were out 
to see the sights of 
the Mexican capital. 
They did not wait for 
the early breakfast, 
but on hearing the 
bell from a neighbor- 
ing church tower they 
sallied forth in time 

to see the streets filled with people on their way to morning mass. Fred 
made note of the fact that women seemed to be very much in the major- 
ity, and he was not surprised to learn afterwards, in conversation with a 




ON THE WAT TO MORNING MASS. 



144 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



gentleman who resided in the city, that religion in Mexico has its greatest 

liold upon the women, " The men are negligent of, or, as a general thing, 

indifferent to, religious subjects," said his informant ; " and were it not for 

the women of Mexico the Church would have very 

little hold upon the population." 

The ladies were in mantillas, which are the rule 
of society for morning mass, though not for prom- 
enades at later hours of the day. Since the influx 
of foreignei's, in the last decade 
or so, the fashions of Mexico have 
undergone a change, and steadily 
approach the Parisian. But the 
mantilla still holds its place for 
morning mass, and will probably 
do so for a long while. Of course 
the priests might change it if 
they desired to do so, but they 
are opposed to innovations, and 
were, speaking generally, bitter 
opponents of the railway and tel- 
egraph. The mantilla is a very 
becoming outside garment for a 
pretty woman whose brunette 
complexion harmonizes with what she wears. Frank and Fred carried 
with them for hours, if not for a longer period, the recollection of some 
of the faces that came within the range of their vision on that morning 
walk. 

They were frequently accosted by the sellers of crucifixes, rosaries, 
and other things appertaining to the religion which was represented by 
the people on their way to mass. Evidently the morning is the best 
time for these venders to dispose of their wares, and they endeavor 
to make the most of it. Rather incongruously, these dealers in sacred 
things were jostled by the sellers of lottery tickets ; these gentry pursue 
their avocations at all hours and in all places and are very persistent. 
They offer to sell you the ticket that will be sure to draw the highest 
prize, and in every way possible exercise their ingenuity to persuade you 
to buy. The tickets are of all prices, and one can invest much or little, 
according to his means and inclination, 

Frank investigated the subject of lotteries in Mexico, and found that 
they were a regular institution of the country ; in fact, they are to be 




A MODERN STREET FRONT. 



LOTTEEIES AND THEIR POPULARITY. 



145 



found in pretty nearly all the countries of Spanish America. The Gov- 
ernment gives charters to certain associations, and. very often runs the lot- 
tery itself ; the profits are large, and the Government makes a handsome 
revenue from the business. The sale of tickets amounts to about $3,000,000 
a year in Mexico ; and after deducting the value of the prizes and the ex- 
pense of conducting the enterprise, the net revenue to the Government is 
not far from $800,000. 

Frank did not invest in the lottery, but he went to witness one of the 
drawings. It took place in public, and seemed to be perfectly fair. The 
numbers were drawn from the boxes by blind boys, who were brought 
from one of the hospitals for the blind, and were accompanied by the pro- 
fessor in charge of that institution. Sometimes, when a blind boy or man 



Rija mil cvatro 



cientos seteiita y seis. 



HIFA 1476 A EAVOR DEL 



Octavo de Billete para la Rifa inil 
seteuta y seis, que se lia de celebrar oji 
quince \U Dlciembre de luil 
ochocientos sesenta y cibco ; » 
91.000. p s)R Oct. 7. 



Mi\ ochocientos sesenta ij clnco 



cuatl 



MEXICAN LOTTERY TICKET. 



cannot be easily obtained, the drawing is made by an Indian who cannot 
read ; and he is carefully blindfolded, so that there can be no suspicion 
of fraud. 

Judging by the large attendance at the drawing, it is evident that the 
lottery is very popular in Mexico. Xearly everybody seems to speculate 
in the tickets, and when the drawing is made and the lucky number an- 
nounced, there is intense excitement. Tliere is an old adage that lightning, 
does not strike twice in the same place. It would seem as if the proverb 
10 



146 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



should be reversed, as the story goes that Senor Manuel Garcia, the owner 
of a hacienda near Manzanillo, won the highest prize in the great I^ational 
Lottery three times in succession. 

Flower-sellers were out in goodly number when the youths took their 
morning walk, and the wares they offered were fresh and attractive. We 
have already seen the fondness of the Mexicans for flowers, as shown at 
Monterey and elsewhere in the north. The city offered no exception to 
the rule, and the size and beauty of the bouquets, combined with their low 
price, were calculated to astonish the visitors. For twenty-five cents Frank 
bought a bouquet, which he sent to Doctor Bronson's room. It was about 
two feet high and the same in diameter, and was comjjosed principally of 
roses of a dozen varieties. While Frank was paying for his purchase 
Fred sniffed at it, and was surprised to find that in spite of their beauty 
the roses had hardly any perfume. On inquiry, he learned that this was 
the case with nearly all flowers in the Yalley of Mexico, and w^as sup- 
posed to be due to the rarity of the air. 

"We had some difficulty at first," said Fred, " in finding our way about 
the city, for the reason that the names of some of the streets change at 
each block. This plan, ^vhich is very annoying to a stranger, and even to 
a resident, is being given up ; and they told us that in a few years they 
hoped to abandon it altogether. Just think what JSTew York or Boston 
would be with such a system as this !" 




FLOWER-GIRL. 



THE GREAT CATHEDRAL. 147 



CHAPTEE X. 

THE CATHEDRAL OF MEXICO.— SITE OF THE AZTEC TEOCALLL— HUMAN SACRI- 
FICES.— PAA^ORAMA OF THE YALLEY OF MEXICO.— EXTENT AND COST OF THE 
CATHEDRAL ; CHAPELS AND ALTARS.— TOMB OF ITURBIDE.— THE CAREER AND 
TRAGIC END OF ITURBIDE.— THE RICHEST ALTAR IN THE WORLD.— GOLDEN 
CANDLESTICKS A MAN COULD NOT LIFT.— THE AZTEC CALENDAR-STONE ; ITS 
INTERESTING FEATURES; INSCRIPTION ON THE STONE.— BRIEF ACCOUNT OF 
THE AZTECS.— THE TRIBE CALLED MEXICANS.— AZTEC LAWS AND CUSTOMS.— 
PREVALENCE OF THE DEATH PENALTY.- AZTEC POSTING SYSTEM.— PICTURE- 
WRITING.— FLOWER-SHOW IN THE ZOCALO.— A FASHIONABLE ASSEMBLAGE.— 
WONDERFUL WORK IN FEATHERS. 

"TjST Paris," said Frank in his note-book, "the Church of i^otre Dame 
-*- is the first object of interest to the stranger. In Yienna he goes 
first to St. Stephen's, and in Rome to St. Peter's. So in the cajDital of 
Mexico we go first to the catliedral. 

" It is a magnificent building, and would do honor to any of the capi- 
tals of Europe. The spot where it stands is historic ; the Spaniards de- 
stroyed the Aztec city that stood here, and built their own upon its ruins, 
and where now stands the cathedral the Teocalli, or temple of the Aztecs, 
was formerly to be seen. It is saddening to think of the rivers of blood 
that flowed here in the sacrifices which the Aztecs deemed necessary to their 
religious exercises. 

" The historical authorities say generally that 60,000 persons were 
slaughtered in a single year on the altars of the Great Teocalli of Tenoch- 
titlan (the Aztec city that stood here and was destroyed by the Span- 
iards) ; most of them were prisoners of Avar, but when there was not a 
sufficient supply of prisoners the Aztecs themselves were chosen for 
sacrifice. The Spaniards may have shown great cruelty in their treat- 
ment of the people they conquered, but they did well to put a stop to 
this terrible shedding of blood in the name of religion. 

" The Teocalli was a pyramid of earth, faced with stone, and is said to 
have been 150 feet in height. Steps led around and up its sides, and they 
were so arranged that in mounting to the top the pedestrian made a com- 
.plete circuit of the structure. On the summit was the sacrificial altar, and 
this is supposed to have been very nearly where the centre of the cathe- 



148 



THE BOY TKAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



dral is at present. The sacrificial stone from the Teocalli is now in the 
museum ; it is shaped like a millstone, is three feet liigh bj nine in diam- 
eter, and is elaborately carved on the sides and up})er surface. Tliere is a 
bowl in the centre, and a gutter leading from the bowl to one side to j^er- 
mit the flow of blood from the victims. 

"But we are wandering from the cathedral in considering what pre- 
ceded it. The Teocalli was destroyed, and the materials were used for fill- 
ing up the neighboring canal ; then a small church was erected, and fol- 




THE CATHEDRAL, CITY OF MEXICO. 



lowed by a larger one, and this again was removed in 15T3 to make room 
for the present cathedral, which was completed ninety-four years later at 
an expense of $2,000,000. It stands on the eastern side of the Plaza 
Mayor, and is a very conspicuous object in the panorama of the city. 
Like most Catholic cathedrals, it is in the shape of a cross, its greatest 
length being 426 feet, and its greatest width 200 feet. It is 175 feet high, 
and its towers rise to a height of 200 feet. We ascended to the top of 



THE CENTEE OF THE CAPITAL. 



149 




150 THE BOY TEAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

one of the towers, and advise all visitors to the city to do likewise, as they 
will have from it one of the finest views in the world. 

" As we looked from tlie tower we agreed with Bishop Haven that 
never did a city have such an environment. The whole city lay below ns 
spread out like a map ; there are few chimneys in Mexico, and conse- 
quently there was no smoke to mar the view, and we readily traced the 
streets and avenues, stippled with the green of the squares and gardens 
that abound so numerously. We looked over the plains and down upon 
the lakes, and then our gaze swept to the mountains that surround the 
valley in a jagged chain that covers nearly 200 miles of distance in its 
girdling course. The snow-covered peaks of Popocatepetl and his sister 
and companion, ' The White Woman,' seemed to rise higher than we had 
before seen them, and added a solemnity to the picture in addition to that 
which it already possessed. ISTorth of the city rises the hill on which is 
built the Church of Guadalupe, and on the west is that of Chapultepec. 
As we looked on the latter we thought of the heroic attack upon the for- 
tress by the American army in our war with Mexico, while the former se- 
cured our respect as one of the places which are sacred in the eyes of 
pious Mexicans. 

" The $2,000,000 which I mentioned as the cost of the cathedral were 
for the walls alone ; at one time the wealth of the church, in silver and 
gold and costly pictures, was something almost beyond calculation, but it 
has been repeatedly plundered, and the aggregate work of the despoilers 
has stripped off much of its magnificence, but even now it is very rich, 
and as long as peace continues is likely to remain so. There are six altars, 
fourteen chapels, and five naves ; there are paintings by famous artists of 
Spain, and there is a balustrade around the choir which is said to weigh 
50,000 pounds, and is so valuable that the church authorities refused an 
offer to replace it with a balustrade of solid silver of equal weight. The 
balustrade was made in Macao, China, and is of tumbago, a composite of 
silver, copper, and gold. It was brought to Acapulco, and transported 
thence on pack-mules to this city. 

" We visited the chapels in which the remains of some of the great men 
of Mexico are buried, notably the chapel of San Felipe de Jesus, which 
contains the tomb and monument of the unfortunate Iturbide, the first em- 
peror of Mexico. On the monument he is called ' The Liberator,' and we 
are told that his birthday is remembered and honored, as it justly deserves 
to be. We haven't yet told you who Iturbide was. 

" He was born in 1783, his parents having come from Spain shortly be- 
fore his birth, and settled at what is now Morelia.,in Mexico. He became 



A THRONELESS EMPEEOE. 



151 



I 'I ''ilfJii'l'l'll 



1 




AUGUSTIN DE ITURBIDE. GRANDSON OF THE LIBERATOR. 



152 THE BOY TEAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

a soldier, and fought in the wars against the revokitionary movements in 
the first fifteen years of the present century. In 1816 he went into pri- 
vate life, having been dismissed from the service in consequence of quar- 
rels with men high in power ; then he began to dream of securing the 
independence of Mexico ; and when the revolutionary movement became 
general in 1820, he joined it. He was soon at the head of the army, the 
revolution succeeded, independence was acknowledged, and Iturbide was 
23roclaimed EmjDeror May 18, 1822, and crowned on the 21st of the follow- 
ing July. 

" But peace did not follow his coronation. There was a new revolu- 
tion, with Santa Anna at its head, and Iturbide was forced to abdicate 
the throne and leave the country. He went to Italy, and afterwards to 
England ; but in 1821 the desire to regain his crown led him back to 
Mexican soil, where he had been j^roclaimed a traitor and an outlaw. He 
landed at Soto la Marina on the 11th of July, and was arrested. Five days 
later he was shot by order of the military commander ; as he fell he as- 
sured the multitude that his intentions were not treasonable, and exhorted 
them to religion, patriotism, and obedience to the Government. And here 
his body rests, the judgment ujDon his conduct having been long ago re- 
versed. His grandson now lives in Washington. Maximilian, being child- 
less, chose young Iturbide, the grandson, to be his heii- to the throne of 
Mexico, but there is little likelihood that he will ever ascend its steps ; 
the atmosphere of Mexico does not seem favorable to imperial plants. 

" In the days of its glory the high altar of this cathedral was the rich- 
est in the world. There were candlesticks of solid gold upon it ; they were 
so heavy as to make a load for a strong man, and some were so large that 
the strength of one man was not sufficient to raise them. The other orna- 
ments and a23purtenances of the altar were of corresponding richness and 
value, some of the crosses, pixes, and censers being studded with dia- 
monds, pearls, amethysts, saJDphires, emeralds, and rubies. There was a 
statue of the Assumption, which was of gold set with diamonds, and is 
said to have cost more than $1,000,000. It is gone ; and so is a lamp 
which was valued at $70,000 ; and with them many other things of great 
value have disappeared. Some one says that it cost $1000 to clean that 
famous lamp, but the revolutionary troops cleaned it out for nothing. 
The balustrades of tumbago remain undisturbed, possibly because the 
real value of that metal was unknown at the time of the looting of the 
cathedral. 

" Like Catholic churches everywhere, the cathedral is always open, and 
men and women come here for prayer whenever opportunity offers, in ad- 



WOESHIPPEES IN THE CATHEDKAL. 



153 



dition to tlieir attendance at mass. In nearly every cliapel we saw one or 
more kneeling figures. All classes meet here on common ground; and 
the poor Indian may be seen worshipping side by side with the richly 
clad and jewelled lady whose family is of the purest blood of S|)ain. On 
great festivals the church is crowded, and the mingling is most indiscrim- 
inate. At such times pickpockets are said to abound ; and they manage to 
steal handkerchiefs and purses while kneeling devoutly at the side of those 




GRANTING ABSOLUTION IN THE CATHEDRAL. 



whose possessions they covet. Mexican thieves are quite adroit, and some 
of their performances are, professionally considered, worthy of the highest 
praise. 

" Before leaving the cathedral we inspected the famous calendar-stone 
of the Aztecs, which is in the base of one of the towers. Fred will tell 
you about it ; my business is now with the churches." 

Frank added to his notes that in addition to the cathedral there were 
forty-six large churches in the city, all of them broad and high, and orna- 
mented with domes or towers. One, the Sagrario, adjoins the cathedral, 



154 



THE BOY TEAVELLEES IN MEXICO. 




READY FOR MASS. 



and is connected with it by a large 

door ; its fagade is richly, and, as 

Frank thought, rather grotesquely 

carved. 

One of the most fashionable 

churches is the Profesa, which is 

crowded during Lent with the la- 
dies of the best society, all arrayed 

in solemn black, in accordance with 

the church -going custom already 

mentioned. Our friends went there, 

and also to the Church of San Fer- 
nando, which is near the cemetery, 

and is the resting-place of most 

of the illustrious men of Mexico. 

Generals Miramon and Mejia, who 

were shot with Maximilian, are 

buried there ; San Fernando also contains a monument to President Juarez, 

which is considered one of the best works of modern sculpture. It was 

made by Manuel Islas, a Mexican 
sculptor. The monumental group 
is in a small Greek temple, and 
represents the dead President lying 
at full length, with his head resting 
on the knee of a feminine figure, 
which represents Mexico. 

Doctor Bronson and the youths, 
paid a visit one morning to the 
church where the remains of Cor- 
tez the Conqueror rested at one 
time, and by many are supposed to 
be resting to-day. It was the de- 
sire of Cortez, in case of his death 
in Europe, to have his bones trans- 
ported to the ISiew World. They 
were brought to Mexico in 1629, 
and rested quietly in this church for 
nearly 200 years, when they were 
secretly removed, through fear that 

OLD SPANISH PALACE IN THE CALLE DE JESUS. tllC tOUlb WOUld bc violatcd by tllC 




DESCRIPTION OF THE CALENDAR-STONE. 



155 



'Revolutionists, who had a bitter hatred of everything Spanish. They 
were first placed in another part of the chiirch, and then sent to Italy, 
where they now are. From present indications, the Mexicans are not 
likely to ask for their return. 

When we left the cathedral we gave a glance at the Aztec calendar- 
stone, which Fred was to describe to ns. Listen to his account : 

" The Aztec calendar-stone," writes Fred, " is exceedingly interesting, 
both from its historic character and as a work of the sculptor's art. Some 
say the name is incorrect, and that the stone is not intended for a calen- 
dar. "We will not enter into the dispute, but accept the name by which 
the' antiquity is best known. It is 
of circular shape, eleven feet in di- 
ameter, and is said to weigh twenty- 
five tons. 

"A great deal has been written 
about this stone, and there has been 
a wonderful amount of speculation 
and theory concerning it. I haven't 
space or time to consider every- 
body's story, and will take that of 
Senor Chavero, who, as we are told, 
is one of the best authorities, if not 
the best of all. Senor Chavero says 
the stone was engraved in honor of 
the sun, and for this reason it is of- 
ten called ' The Stone of the Sun.' 

"According to this gentleman's 
account, the stone was made in the 
reign of King Axayacatl, about 1479 

of our era, and was originally placed horizontally in the temple of Mexico. 
When the temple was destroyed by Cortez after the Conquest, the stone 
lay for a while in the great square. It was buried about the middle of 
the sixteenth century, and remained beneath the surface of the plaza until 
1790, when it was unearthed and placed where it is now to be seen. 

" Here is what Senor Chavero says of the meaning of the sculpture on 
the stone : 

" ' The face in the centre is the god-star throwing his light on the 
earth, which is represented by the tongue protruding from his lips. He 
has the pupils of his eyes turned upward, and they are seen through the 
sacred mask that covers the upper part of his face. The hieroglyphics on 




CHURCH BUILT BY CORTEZ. 



156 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



the diadem encircling the head represent the division of time and the 
Mexican method of numbering the years. The civil year, like ours, was 
365 days. Each four years had different emblems repeated successively, 
without reference to other chronological arrangements. The first year 
was called tochtl, or rabbit ; the second, acatl, or reed ; the third, tecjyatl, 
or flint; the fourth, colli, or house. In addition to these periods, the 
years were arranged by the number of thirteen, four of such periods 
making fifty-two years, or a Mexican age, when the Festival of Fire oc- 




THE AZTEC CALENDAR-STONE. 



curred. This was a most serious event for the Mexicans, as the priests 
taught the people that the world might come to an end and terrible 
demons would descend from above and eat up mankind. 

" ' The two claws on the dial at the sides of the mask represent com- 
putations of numbers, for which the hand was used in a sort of deaf-and- 
dumb alphabet. The large Y-shaped ornaments denote four equal divis- 
ions of the day, and the smaller ornaments of the same shape indicate the 
division of the day into eight parts. The ornaments lying between the 
Y's represent eight divisions of the night. The twenty' ornaments in 



OEIGIN OF THE AZTECS. 



157 



panels in the circle inside the Y's are symbols of twenty days, or one 
Mexican month. The rest of the stone is differently interpreted by dif- 
ferent writers, but they generally agree that it represents the relations of 
the months to the year and the years to the Mexican cycle.' 

" And here is a good place," said Fred, " to make some notes about the 
Aztecs. Properly speaking, they were only one of the tribes or nations 
that occupied the plateau of Anahuac, or Mexico, at the time of the Con- 
quest by Cortez. They migrated from the north, the aggregate time con- 
sumed in their migrations being nearly 200 years, and finally settled in the 
Yalley of Mexico, at a spot where tliey saw an eagle sitting on a cactus 
and with a snake in his beak. This eagle and cactus have been adopted as 
the symbol of Mexico, and are seen on the national flag and on the coins. 




INDIAN PICTURE-WEITING. 



" The Aztecs found the valley occupied by the Toltecs, who had been 
there for several centuries. They made war on the Toltecs, took posses- 
sion of the country, and proceeded to build a city on the site of the pres- 
ent capital. It was called Tenochtitlan ('cactus on a stone'), and the 
foundations were laid about a.d. 1324. Lake Tezcoco was then much 
higher than it is now, and the new city was surrounded by water, and 
greatly resembled Yenice in the abundance of its canals. It could only 
be approached on narrow causeways, and there was a fleet of boats on the 
lakes which prevented attack by water. Witli this stronghold as a base, 
the Aztecs gradually conquered all the surrounding people, so that they 
had possession of the entire valley at the time of the arrival of Cortez. 

" One of the tribes of the Aztecs was called Mexicans, from Mexi, their 
chief. This tribe seems to have become more powerful than the rest. 



158 



THE BOY TEAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




tliougli originally it rank- 
ed as tlie seventh. It 
gave the name to the 
whole people, and from 
the people the name 
passed to the country. 

"If yon think the 
Aztecs, or ancient Mex- 
icans, were a barbarous 
people, look at some of 
their laws and customs. 
" They had a com- 
plete system of laws, and 
they had courts in all 
their cities and towns to 
administer the laws. 
They had inns along the 
roads for the free accom- 
modation of travellers, and bridges or boats at the crossings of rivers. 
Creditors could imprison their debtors ; slaves about to be sold might free 
themselves by seeking refuge in the royal palace ; and treason, embezzle- 



/Snc/nmiico ^ 



TENOCHTITLAN, A.D. 1517. 




FIRST CAVALRY CHARGE BY CORTEZ. 



AZTEC LAWS AND CUSTOMS. 



159 



ment of taxes, and any crime against the person of the sovereign would 
cause the death of the offender and all his relatives to the fourth degree. 
Slander was punished by cutting off the lips or ears, and death was the 
penalty for robbing in the market, altering lawful measures, or remov- 
ing the legal boundaries of land. Prisoners of war were devoured, en- 
slaved, or offered as sacrifices ; and there were two sorts of prisons : one 
for debtors and others not charged with capital crimes, the other for con- 
demned criminals and prisoners of war. 




A FLOWER-SHOW IN ZOCALO, 



" They had no beasts of burden ; and when Cortez landed with the few 
horses that he brought on his ships, he struck terror to the hearts of the 
people, who had never seen such an animal. All burdens were carried on 
men's backs, and they had towers erected along the principal roads for for- 
warding the King's despatches. These towers were about six miles apart,. 



160 



THE BOY TEAVELLEES IN MEXICO. 



and couriers were always standing ready to receive messages which were 
brought from the last tower or station by a man running at the top of his 
speed. Letters were carried three hundred miles in a day by this method. 
This system is almost identical with that of the great Khan of Cathay, as 
described by Marco Polo, except that the Khan had his post-stations only 
three miles apart, instead of six. 

" I think I hear you ask something about their language and how they 

wrote. Well, they had no 
written language like ours, 
with letters and words, but 
they had a picture-writing, 
in which everything was 
represented by drawings and 
paintings. They had rec- 
ords of this sort of all their 
history, and their books and 
papers would have filled a 
large library, but they were 
burned by the Spaniards, 
who thought it a sin to 
allow these pagan docu- 
ments to exist. Only a very 
few of the picture-writings 
\ receding the Conquest 
1 ave been preserved. When 
Cortez landed on the coast 
cf Mexico, a full account 
and description of his ships 
and men were sent to the 
King by means of these 
pictures. The Aztec pict- 
ure-writings have a remark- 
able similarity to the hie- 
roglyphics of the ancient 
Egyptians, and some writers believe that the Aztecs are the lost tribes of 
Israel, who wandered to America and brought the Egyptian form of writ- 
ing with them. 

" That will do for the present about the Aztecs," said Fred. " If you 
want more you must wait a while till I take breath." 

Ered made a sudden descent from the sixteenth to the nineteenth cen- 




HOW THE MANTILLA IS WORN. 



FLOWER-SHOW IN MEXICO. 



161 



tury, and as lie closed his note-book he sug- 
gested a stroll to the grand plaza. 

Frank assented, and away they went. 
It was the hour when fashionable people 
were out for their daily airing, and the dis- 
play was well worth seeing. There was a 
flower-show in the Zocalo, a garden in the 
centre of the plaza. It is not a relic of the 
Conquest, but of very modern origin, as it 
was laid out by Maximilian, who had a good 
eye for the beautiful. Many persons com- 
plain of the Zocalo, as it partially obstructs 
the view of the cathedral. 

Frank and Fred found the flower-show 
very, interesting, not only on account of the 
floral products which they saw, but also because of 
the artistic arrangement of the bouquets. Some of 
the bouquets contained strawberries and other small 
fruits on account of the contrasts of color, and there 
were many bunches and baskets with little flags, 
on which were mottoes, patriotic, sentimental, and 
otherwise, so that all reasonable tastes could be ac- 
commodated. There was a band of music playing, 
and the fashionable population seemed to have assem- 
bled in the Zocalo to see and be seen. 

Not the least interesting part of the show was the 
crowd of promenaders. The ladies were in the fash- 
ions of Paris, perhaps six months after the date of 
their issue in the French capital, and every young 
lady was accompanied by her duenna, an elderly 
woman, who never for a moment left the side of her 
charge, and scarcely removed her eyes from her. 
Fashionable young, middle-aged, and old men were 
there, but the younger seemed to be in the majority. 
Some of them wore the national costume, the trou- 
sers and short jacket, ornamented with silver buttons, 
and the broad-rimmed sombrero, covered with silver braid and embroid- 
ery ; others had adopted the walking costume of Europe ; and from the 
number of these it was evident that the old fashion is dying out. Frank 
and Fred thought it a pity that such should be the case, as the Mexican 
11 




THE TROGON. 



162 



THE BOY TEAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



dress is picturesque, and certainly distinctive of its wearers. Some of 
the ladies wore the mantilla in combination with their Parisian dresses, 
while others had adopted the French bonnet, with all the delicacy of trim- 
ming that adapts it for tine weather only. 

From the Zocalo the youths wandered to the shops along one side of 
the square, where they lingered for some time among the curiosities which 
were exposed for sale. The first thing to attract their attention were the 
famous feather pictures which are made by the Indians, exactly as they 
were made in the days before the Conquest. The secret of this work has 
been handed down from father to son, and is known in its perfection to a 
comparatively small number. 

"We saw some feather pictures," said Frank, " that were marvels of 
beauty and skill. The brilliant plumage of the paroquet, humming-bird, 
trogon, and other members of the ornithological family of Mexico, is used 
for this work, and the colors are as skilfully blended as are the pigments 
of an accomplished painter. Considering the time required for their pro- 
duction, these pictures are wonderfully cheap, and we have bought several 
to send as curios to our friends at home. The ancestors of the feather ar- 
tists of to-day made the famous feather cloak of Montezuma, which excited 
alike the admiration and the cupidity of Cortez and his companions." 




ARTISTIC TASTE OF THE PEOPLE. 



163 



CHAPTER XL 

LOST ARTS m MEXICO.— GOLDSMITHS' WORK IN THE TIME OF CORTEZ.— SILVER 
FILIGREE.— MODELLING IN WAX AND CLAY.— NATIVE TASTE FOR MUSIC— NA- 
TIONAL CONSERVATORY OF MUSIC— MUSEUM OF i\NTIQUITIES.— THE SACRIFI- 
CIAL STONE. — SACRIFICES AMONG THE ANCIENT MEXICANS. — GLADIATORIAL 
STONE.— A BRAVE SOLDIER.— OBSIDIAN KNIVES AND RAZORS.— AZTEC METAL- 
LURGY.— STATUE OF THE GOD OF WAR.— SHIELD AND CLOAK OF MONTEZUMA. 
—AZTEC WARFARE AND DOMESTIC LIFE.— RELICS OF HIDALGO AND MAXIMIL- 
IAN.— MAX'S STATE COACH.— NATIONAL PALACE.— HALL OF THE AMBASSADORS. 
—MEXICAN PAINTINGS.— THE MONTE DE PIEDAD.— AN EXTENSIVE PAWN-SHOP. 
—LOCKING UP MEN AS SECURITY.— FORMALITIES OF THE SALESROOM. 

FINE as is the artistic taste of the Indians of Mexico to-day, it is far 
behind that of the people wliom Cortez found there. According to 
history and tradition, their work in the precious metals surpassed that of 
any of the goldsmiths of Europe ; they fashioned gold and silver into the 
shape of plants, birds, fishes, and 
quadrupeds, and their imitations were 
marvellously correct in all their de- 
tails. All this art seems to be lost, 
with the exception of the working of 
silver filigree, which still holds high 
rank. Cortez sent to Spain some ex- 
quisite specimens of Aztec work in 
gold and silver ; and the cupidity of 
the King, impelled by the necessities 
of the Government, put all these pre- 
cious works of Occidental art into the 
melting-pot, the resort of the modern 
burglar when he wishes to remove the 
trace of his depredations. 

All through their journey in Mex- 
ico the youths had been impressed 
with the little figures, modelled out 
of wax or clay, representing the vari- 
ous people of the country and their was model op watkr-carrier. 




164 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



occupations. These statuettes are made by uneducated savages with 
hardly any tools, colored with native pigments, and baked in the sun or 
in primitive ovens. Water-carriers, porters, muleteers, mozos of all names 
and kinds, flower-sellers, beggars, street peddlers, basket-makers — all and 
many more are represented. The figures are generally covered with cloth 




ANCIENT INDIAN POTTERY. 



tinted of the appropriate colors ; but if not so tinted, the colors are wrought 
into the plastic material of which the figure is composed. Our young 
friends bought a goodly supply of these figures, and had them carefully 
packed for transportation. Fred thought they were fully equal in artistic 
design and workmanship to any of the figures they had seen in Japan, 
China, or India representing the trades and occupations of the far East. 

Mention has been made of the pottery of the Guadalajara Indians, 
which is wrought into a great many fantastic forms. These Indians have 
great ability in portraiture ; they will model in a wonderfully short time a 
statuette of an individual either from life or from a photograph. An en- 
terprising American once planned to take some of these people to the 
principal cities of the United States and Europe, and open an establish- 
ment for the manufacture of statuettes of individuals at ten or twenty 



NATIONAL TASTE FOR MUSIC. 



165 



dollars each. His project was not carried out, for the reason that the 
Indians refused to leave their homes. The native Mexican is averse to 
changing his residence, and it requires a great inducement to take him 
away from his native soil. 

The women show unusual dexterity with the needle, and their em- 
broidery equals that of the natives of India and other Eastern lands. 
They display great industry and patience, and while seated in the market- 
place beside the wares they offer for sale their spare moments are generally 
devoted to stitching. 

" In no part of the world where we have been," said Frank, " have we 
found a more musical people than the natives of Mexico. They 'catch on' 
to a tune or air with great readiness, and gentlemen who live here tell us 
they have known Indians to sing a common melody through without a 
mistake after hearing it only once, 
and this, too, when they have no 

scientific knowledge of music, or ' ; 

even of its first principles. They \ ., 

learn readily to play upon musical in- ^ ; ^' l . . 

struments, and a street band can be ^ 

organized and trained in less time 
than a street band in any other part 
of the world. Some of these bands 




MEXICAN HOUSE MAID AND CHILDREN, 



166 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



are composed of boys of about fifteen years of age, and tbeir performances 
almost invariably excite tbe admiration of musical strangers. 

" We are told tbat the Government is encouraging the musical tastes 
of the- people by giving free instruction to pupils in the National Conserv- 
atory of Music, and supporting them during their studies by small allow- 
ances of money. We have heard of pupils that came on foot for hundreds 




THE SACRIFICIAL STONE. 



of miles to be musically educated in the capital. In order to secure ad- 
mission to the Conservatory, they must pass an examination similar to that 
of musical schools in other parts of the world. . Mrs. Gooch, the author of 
a book on Mexico, mentions two girls who walked from Queretaro to the 
capital to present themselves as pupils in the Conservatory. She says she 
heard them sing selections from Italian opera, and the sweetness, strength, 
and range of their voices were far beyond the average, and produced a 
profound impression upon the audience." 

" Speaking of girls," said Fred, " reminds us that the Mexican chil- 
dren of both the upper and lower classes treat their parents with the 
greatest respect, and set an example that the children of the United 



AZTEC SACKIFICES. 



167 



States migbt do well to follow. Tliej remind us of Japanese and Chi- 
nese children more than of any other we have seen, and are very much 
unlike the little folks of English-speaking countries in this one particular. 
Since we -came into the country, whenever we have seen a badly behaved 
child we have found that he belonged to a foreign family. Old people 
are invariably cared for by their children, who would suffer all sorts of 
privations rather than have their parents want for anything they can pos- 
sibly provide." 

Having seen and described the Aztec calendar-stone, Frank and Fred 
were naturally drawn to the ^National Museum and to the sacrificial stone, 
which has been mentioned, and is one of the great attractions of the 
place. 

" It is' «, block of porphyry," said Fred, " like a huge millstone, three 
feet high and ten feet across. All around the sides are relief fio^ures 
representing captives being held by the hair of tlie head. There are 
fifteen of these gronps, and they are said to represent fifteen victories 




ONE FORM OF SACRIFICIAL STONE. 



gained by one of the emperors over as many neighboring States. A 
symbol in the corner of the panel of each group shows what city or State 
is represented. The stone was made about the year 1486 of our era, but 
its complete history is unknown. 

" Tizoc was the emperor whose deeds the stone commemorates, and 
it is sometimes called Tizoc's Stone in consequence of this fact. The 
Stone of Sacrifice is sometimes confounded with the Gladiatorial Stone, 
which was generally placed in the courts of 
the temples, and was the scene of a gladiato- 
rial combat. Mr. Charnay, in ' Ancient Cities 
of the JSTew World,' says the captive, if a man 




SACRIFICIAL COLLAR. 



168 



THE BOY TKAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



of distinction, was tied to this stone and allowed to fight with several 
opponents in succession ; and if he succeeded in defeating them all he 
was permitted to escape. They took good care not to let tiiis happen 
very often, as the numbers were against him ; and, furthermore, he had 
only a wooden sword ornamented with feathers, while his enemies had 




THE FORM OF SACRIFICE. 



weapons of obsidian, which were sharp as steel. When he was van- 
quished, as he generally was, he was immediately stretched on the Gladia- 
torial Stone or on the Stone of Sacrifice. A wooden collar was placed 
across his neck to prevent his struggling, and five priests held his head 
and limbs. Then a sixth priest, who wore a scarlet mantle, opened the 
breast of the victim with a sharp knife of itzli, or obsidian, tore out the 
heart, held it up to the sun for a moment, and then cast it at the feet 
of the divinity to whom the temple was dedicated. 

"While this was going on the multitude knelt in adoration of the 
divinity. The body of the victim was thrown down from the stone to 
the people, by whom it was divided to be served up at their feasts. The 
difference between sacrifice on the Gladiatorial Stone and the Stone of 
Sacrifice was that the latter was on tlie top of the temple, where every- 



GLADIATORIAL COMBATS. 



169 



bodj could see it, while the former was in the court of the edifice, and 
only accessible to a select few. 

" The same authority," continued Fred, " tells us that the Mexicans 
were very punctilious about this ceremony ev'en when they were the 
victims of it. A soldier when captured was reserved for sacrifice. He 
would consider himself disgraced, and would rather suffer death than be 
liberated except after a gladiatorial combat. There is a story of a chief 
who was captured and taken before Montezuma ; he had a high reputa- 
tion as a warrior, and, on learning his name, the King treated him with 
honor, spared his life, and offered him his liberty. The chief refused the 
offer, and demanded that he should be devoted to the gods, according to 




z»'<^^>*— ■ 



SCTTLPTTTRES FROM TIZOC'S STONE. 



custom. After trying in vain to have him change his mind, Montezuma 
ordered that the chief should be tied to the stone and permitted to fight 
with some of the King's best soldiers, while the King himself, accom- 
panied by his officers, should witness the combat. The chief killed eight 
men and wounded twenty; but he was finally overpowered, and carried 
off to be sacrificed to the war-god Huitzilopochtli." 



170 



TliE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



" But you haven't said what these knives were with whicli the priests 
killed their victims," Frank remarked, as Fred paused. "What is ob- 
sidian V 

" It is a mineral substance," replied Doctor Bronson, to whom the 
question was referred, " and is formed by the cooling of the lava from a 
volcano. When lava cools it forms into obsidian and pumice. Every- 
body knows what pumice-stone is. Obsidian is a substance hard enough 




GLADIATORIAL STONE FROM AN AZTEC DRAWING. 



to scratch glass, and is capable of taking a high polish and a keen edge. 
The Mexicans called it itzli, and used it for making knives, razors, arrow- 
tips, saw^s, and other implements." 

"Did they have a knowledge of any of the metals besides gold and 
silver ?" 

" They had no knowledge of iron, but they made use of copper, and 
knew how to temper it so as to make it nearly as hard as steel. They used 
it for many of their implements, but they also had great skill in the use 
of implements of stone, flint, obsidian, and other minerals. They knew 
about lead and tin, but made little use of them, copper being their only 
metal for making into tools. Knives, scissors, and hatchets of copper 
were abundant. Bernal Diaz, who accompanied Cortez, mentions six hun- 
dred hatchets of copper that were paid to the conqueror as tribute by one 



METALS OF ANCIENT MEXICO. 



m 



tribe of natives. There are scissors in the Mexican museum which are 
said to contain tin, copper, lead, and platinum, and Humboldt says the 
Peruvian Indians made use of a similar alloy in making scissors and other 
implements." 




HUITZILOPOCHTLI, THE GOD OF WAR. 



Frank and Fred thanked the Doctor for the information they had 
received, and then turned to contemplate the statue of the god of war to 
whom the brave chief just mentioned was sacrificed. 

" It is a hideous statue," said Fred, " about ten feet high, and appearing 



172 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

at first glance to be composed of heads and hands. It was found in the 
great square not far from the calendar-stone, and after close examination 
we found that it had a skirt of snakes. It was also called the God of 
Death, and this significance is shown by a skull which is sculptured near 
the centre. 

" Skulls and snakes were favorite objects of adoration with the Mexi- 
cans, if we are to judge by the frequency with which we find them dis- 
played. It is said that there was a wall around the principal temple of 
Tenochtitlan composed of colossal heads of snakes carved in stone ; some 
of these have been found and are preserved in the museum. There is a 
coiled serpent there, covered with feathers instead of scales ; it is carved 
in stone and is a very creditable piece of sculpture. 

" They called our attention to a figure which is called the ' Indio 
Triste,' or Sad Indian. It seemed to us that the name was not justified, 
as the Indian was anything but sad. Mr. Brantz Mayer thinks this figure 
was set on a wall or battlement, and held a candlestick or the staff of a 
banner in its hand. It was found in the year 1828 in the street that is 
now called Calle del Indio Triste in commemoration of the discovery. 

" Another interesting object was the shield of Montezuma, which has 
upon it the feather-work for which the people are famous, and also his 
cloak of the same material. It is evident that the feather-workers, won- 
derful as they are, have degenerated since the time of the Conquest. They 
used to make feather-cloth, and we have seen some curiosities in the shape 
of scarfs, scrapes, and rebozos ornamented with feathers, and said to be 
very old. They make none of these things now, but confine themselves 
to pictures on cards, where the feathers are made to adhere by means of 
paste or wax. Each feather is handled separately, and none of the skin 
is ever applied to the card. You can give them a design and they will 
fill it up very quickly. 

" Well, perhaps we have tired you out among the curiosities of ancient 
Mexico, and we will turn to more modern things. We could spend hours 
among the weapons which illustrate the warfare of the ancient Mexicans, 
and also the implements that reveal their domestic life and ways. Some 
of the Aztec picture-writings, which we have already mentioned, are to be 
seen in the museum, and after what we had heard of them we found them 
very interesting. One of the specimens preserved here is supposed to 
represent the migrations of the Aztec tribes. 

" Among the modern objects is the standard raised by 5idalgo in 1810, 
in the revolution which ultimately resulted in the independence of Mexico 
from Spain. The gun, handkerchief, and cane of Hidalgo are also shown. 



SOUVENIRS OF MAXIMILIAN. 

together with other mementos of that hero. Then there are a porJR,it 
of Cortez, and the standard which was carried at the head of his col«ins 
in the conqiiest of Mexico ; and there are the armor of some of hi^om- 
panions, and portraits of the successive viceroys that ruled the couj^ry by 
authority of the King of Spain. 

" Maximilian has been repeatedly brought to our minds by the relics 
of his ill-fated reign. Here is his table service of silver ; and they tell us 
that the metal is not solid, but plated. The Mexicans consider it typical 
of the plated empire which he undertook to set up in America through 
the aid of the charlatan emperor, Louis Napoleon. His state coach is also 
preserved and shown to visitors ; evidently it is highly prized, as the doors 
of the room where it is kept are always locked, stMa a fee is required to 




The vehicle is the finest in America, and it even surpasses, so 
1, the state carriages of many of the imperial and royal establish- 
of Europe. 

" It is lined with white silk brocade, and the trimmings are of heavy 
thread. The wheels are so thickly gilded that you might suppose 



174 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IX MEXICO. 




them to be of solid gold, and the body of the coach is dark red in color. 
The harness is in keeping with the coach, and altogether the vehicle makes 
an interesting show. We are told that Maximilian negotiated large loans 
in England to set np his emj^ire here, and that the debt he incurred forms 

one of the financial burdens now 
resting on Mexico." 

From the museum our friends 
went to the palace, which occupies 
the eastern side of the Plaza May- 
or, and is said to be the largest 
building in the city. Before the 
Conquest, Montezuma's palace 
stood on the site which fell to Cor- 
tez when the conquerors drew lots 
for the possession of the city of 
Tenochtitlan, or, rather, the place 
where it stood. Cortez erected a 
building here which remained until 
1692, when it was destroyed in a 
great riot, and the present palace 
was begun. It has been added to 
from time to time, so that now it 
is neither symmetrical nor hand- 
some. Several departments of the 
Government, including the Presi- 
dency, are located in the building, and its great extent renders it of 
decided utility. 

" "We went through the palace in charge of a guide from the hotel," 
wrote Frank in his journal, " and found it well worth the time and trouble 
of a visit. In one respect it reminded us of the Capitol at Washington, 
as it seemed to be the resort of office-seekers, claim-agents, lobbyists, and all 
that sort of people which every resident of Washington knows so well and 
so numerously. They were in all the patios, and in the corridors in all di- 
rections. We asked how many rooms there are in the palace, but nobody 
whom we asked could tell us, and after repeating the question several 
times we gave it up. 

" Some of the rooms are magnificently furnished ; they represent, to a 

■ certain extent, the varying fortunes of Mexico under different rulers. One 

room, called the Hall of Iturbide, has its walls hung in crimson damask, 

and displays the Eagle and Serpent of Mexico ; this room is not far from 



GEN. MANUEL GONZALES, FORMER PRESIDENT OF 
MEXICO. 



WORK OF NATIVE ARTISTS. 



17o 



the Hall of the Ambassadors, the largest room in the palace. It is over 
300 feet long, but is narrow in proportion to its length. In this hall we 
saw portraits of the principal heroes of the Mexican War of Indepen- 
dence, together with portraits of Juarez, Diaz, and other Presidents. Thej 
are mostly by Mexican artists, some being well, and others badly, painted. 
" At the end of the hall is a painting, twenty-five feet long by ten in 
height, representing the great battle of Puebla, of May 5, 1862, when the 
French were so completely defeated — the battle commonly mentioned in 
Mexican history as the Cinco de Mayo. It is by Miranda, a native artist ; 
and though it is not a fine specimen of painting, it is a correct representa- 
tion of the ground on which the battle was fought — at least, so a gentle- 
man says who has personally visited it. The scene illustrated in the bat- 
tle is the turning-point, when a regiment of ragged Indians from Oajaca 
came into line, drove back the French, and gave the victory to the Re- 




COLLATKRAL IN THE MONTE DE PIEDAD. 



publicans. This battle is regarded as tlie Waterloo or Gettysburg of the 
French in Mexico ; it sealed the fate of Maximilian's empire and re-estab- 
lished the republic. 

" Speaking again of Maximilian reminds us of a room which is on a 
corner of the palace, so that it has two windows at right angles. This was 
his favorite apartment, and in the latter part of his reign he used to pace 
its floor for hours. An English visitor says he could look from it two 
ways at once, though not the way to hold his throne. One window looks 



176 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



upon the market-place, and the other on the Plaza Major ; the room is 
now the storage-place of relics, no one seeming to care to put it to any 
other use." 

From the palace to the pawn-shop may not seem a very natural step, 
though Frank said it had probabl}'' been taken by more people than would 
be willing to acknowledge it. Doctor Bronson and the youths took this 
step at the city of Mexico, and it was not a very 
long one either. The Monte de Piedad is not far 
from the J^ational Palace ; it corresponds to the 
famous Mont de Piete of Paris, and is in most of 
its features analogous to that French institution. 
Here is what Fred learned about it : 

" It has been in operation for more than 150 
years, and was founded by Count de Regla Don 
Pedro Terreros, whose intentions were purely phil- 
anthropic; he endowed it with $300,000 in the 
hope of relieving the poor, and those in temporary 
need of money, from the oppression of the em- 
penos, or ordinary pawn-shops. 

"According to the rules of the institution, the 
depositor gets one-third the estimated value of his 
goods at an interest varying from three to twelve 
and a half per cent, per annum. He must renew 
his tickets every eight months, and when he ceases 
to pay interest upon his loans the goods are kept 
for seven months, and then offered for sale at an 
appraiser's valuation. If there is no offer for them 
in one month, the appraisement is reduced, and 
then they are offered for another month. The performance is repeated 
monthly for six months, and then the goods are sold at auction. If they 
do not bring as much as the appraised valuation, the appraisers must 
make up the deficiency out of their own pockets ! 

"Anything and everything of any value may be pawned here, and the 
vaults have contained at different times money, jewels, and precious metals 
sufficient to endow an empire. ITot all the property here stored has been 
pawned. Many valuables are brought here for safety, as the place is a 
sort of fortress in its way, and most carefully guarded. 

" They showed us through the vaults where the diamonds, pearls, ru- 
bies, and other precious stones are kept, and we saw more of these costly 
baubles than we ever looked at before in a single hour. We glanced 




TO THE PAWN-SHOP. 



THE NATIONAL PAWN-SHOP. 



177 



througli the vaults where pictures, silver plate, watches, clocks, porcelain, 
and kindred things were stored, and then were taken to the money vaults, 
which at times have contained millions of dollars in silver and gold. The 
Monte de Piedad was, until a few years ago, a regular banking institution. 




OCCASIONAL PATRONS OF THE MONTE DE PIEDAD. 

and its notes were ' good as gold ' all through Mexico. Its credit was im- 
paired by the withdrawal of its reserves by the Government, and its bank- 
ing business received a severe blow. 

" Money is not loaned on real estate, or on anything else that cannot be 

deposited within its vaults. They tell us that a foreign merchant once 

came here to borrow money for business purposes, and was accompanied 

by two friends who were to indorse his paper and ' go his security.' The 

12 



178 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

official into whose liands tliej fell said the establishment would make the 
loan at the usual rates, but before completing the transaction he showed 
the ' securities' the room in which they would be locked up until the note 
was paid. We did not ask further particulars, but presume the loan was 
not made. 

"The profits of the bank formerly went to the Church, but latterly they 
have been used for establishing branches elsewhere in the city and all over 
the country. The Monte de Piedad is a national institution and of great 
value to the people. One dollar is the smallest amount loaned, and the 
largest is $10,000, and the loans are said to average, large and small, about 
sixteen dollars each. The number rarely falls below 200 loans in a day, 
and sometimes rises to 2000. About one-third of the articles deposited in 
the bank are never redeemed. 

" Sales of clothing are held on certain days of the month, of precious 
stones on other days, and of pictures and statuary on others. While we 
were looking through the room devoted to sales. Doctor Bronson saw an 
article which he desired, and he at once offered to buy it at the price 
which was marked upon the card attached to it. 

" ' I must first offer it for sale,' said the official in charge of the place. 
' The law requires that I shall do so.' 

"So he held up the article and asked if anybody present would give 
more. 

" It happened at the time that there was no one in the room but our- 
selves and the officials of the bank. The chances of any other offer were 
not great, as neither Frank nor myself was likely to make a higher bid. 
After a brief pause he handed the article over to Doctor Bronson and 
received the money — rather, I should say, he received the money and 
handed over the article, as the bank does not let anything out of its pos- 
session until the cash has been paid into the proper hands." 



FORMS OF POLITENESS. 



179 



CHAPTER XII. 

MEXICAISr POLITENESS.— FREE GIFTS OF HOUSES AND OTHER PROPERTY.— AWK- 
WARD MISTAKES.— AN ENGLISHWOMAN'S DILEMMA, AND HOW SHE GOT OUT OF 
IT.— UNCLE FREDDY AND THE GOVERNOR OF ACAPULCO.— THE GREAT MARKET; 
SIGHTS AND SCENES THERE.— ON THE CANAL.— EXTENSIVE LOCAL COMMERCE. 
—THE CHIA'AMFAS, OR FLOATING GARDENS.— AN EXCURSION ON THE LAKES. 
—SANTA ANITA, A PLACE OF RECREATION.— EXPERTS IN DIVING.— THE HILL 
OF ESTRELLA.— THE FESTIVAL OF FIRE; PRESCOTT'S DESCRIPTION OF THE 
FEARFUL CEREMONY.— FISHING IN THE LAKES.— THE AXOLOTL.— FISH OR REP- 
TILE ?— FLIES' EGGS AS AN ARTICLE OF FOOD. 



^' WfEi have been much impressed and amused," said Fred in a letter 
' ' his mother, "with the Mexican, or, rather, the Spanish, forms 
politeness. Whenever we are in- 
troduced to anybody, he immedi- 
ately says, 'Remember that your 

house is at No. — on Street,' 

notwithstanding that we may have 
told him we are comfortably quar- 
tered at the hotel. In one day a 
dozen or twenty houses were of- 
fered to us ; and ever since then, 
if no more than two or three are 
tendered between sunrise and bed- 
time, we think it is a very poor 
■day for business. Sometimes the 
form is varied by saying, 'My 
house and all it contains are 
jours.' It would be better if they woi; 
the title-deeds to the establishment, wit 
.sale of the furniture acknowledged an( 
before a notary; but thus far nobody I 
far as that. 

" It is a form of politeness, and noth 
the youth continued, " and the people 
us their houses are about as sincere as Americans 




more 



A GIFT TO FRED. 



180 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

are when they say, ' Delighted to see you,' or, ' Happy to meet you,' to 
the people they are introduced to in their own country ; or as the New 
York hostess who says to a departing guest, ' Must you go so soon V 
when she has really been wondering to herself why the visitor tarried so 
long, 

" It seemed very odd until we got used to it and learned the real mean- 
ing of the words, to be told on entering the dwelling of a man we had not 
known five minutes, ' You are in your own house ;' or that we were the 
masters, and he was the humble guest. Doctor Bronsou says they really 
mean to have us make ourselves at home, and they certainly show great 
hosjDitality ; but it would be a sad mistake to take them literally and act as 
though the place belonged to us. 

" Every time we admire anything — a piece of furniture, a garment, an 
article of jewellery or bric-a-brac, or anything else of value — we are imme- 
diately told that it belongs to us, and, if it is portable, that we can carry 
it away with us. If we should be so boorish as to accept the offer, the 
person who made it would not display any annoyance, however much he 
might feel ; he is too polite for that. 

" ' "What would they do under such circumstances V I hear you ask. 
I can best answer by telling a story we heard yesterday. 

" An English lady who had just arrived, and had not learned the forms 
of Mexican politeness, one day admired a set of jewellery, which included 
a very costly necklace of diamonds and other precious stones that had be- 
longed to the family for two or three hundred years. She was told that 
the set of jewellery was hers, and believing they meant what they said, she 
took it away with her when her call was ended. 

" Of course the story was at once told to the friend who had made the 
introduction, and the latter at once went to the guileless stranger and ex- 
plained the situation. She returned the jewels immediately, with the 
explanation that, on reaching home, she had found they did not match 
the dress with which she expected to wear them. She added that she had 
a fine set of jewellery which she thought would be an appropriate present 
for one of the young ladies of the family, and she would send it with great 
pleasure. A polite message was returned declining the offer, and hoping 
it would be in the power of the family to render the English visitor some 
distinguished services during her stay in the city. In this way the whole 
dilficulty was bridged over, and the parties were good friends. 

" A similar story was told us regarding an American lady who visited 
Mexico several years ago, and, through her ignorance of the local forms of 
politeness, accepted the offer of a rare and beautiful shawl. Mutual friends 



"UNCLE FREDDY." 



181 




"MY HOUSE AND ALL IT CONTAINS ARE TOURS." 



arranged the matter amicably ; but the fair American was greatly morti- 
fied when she learned the mistake she had made. 

" Doctor Bronson says there used to be a harmless lunatic in San Fran- 
cisco, and afterwards in New York, who went about the streets dressed in 
the old Continental costume. With his long and snowy hair, and quaint 
costume, he was a noticeable figure. He was under the belief that he re- 
sembled Benjamin Franklin, and he used to exhibit a j)hotograph repre- 
senting himself standing at the base of the Franklin monument in Boston. 

" His passage by steamer was paid from San Francisco to New York 



182' 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



by some friends, and during the voyage the vessel spent a day at Acapul- 
co. ' Uncle Freddy,' as he was called, went on shore with other passen- 
gers, and was introduced to the Governor. The Governor made him the 
usual offer of his house and everything it contained, and when tlie hour 

came to go on board 
the steamer the recip- 
ient of the offer refused 
to accompany the oth- 
er passengers. He de- 
clared that the Govern- 
or had given him the 
house, and he was going 
to remain and enjoy it 
for the rest of his life. 
Exjjlanations were use- 
less ; and after vainly 
trying to induce him to 
change his mind, the 
passengers seized Uncle 
Freddy and carried him 
bodily in their arms to 
the boat which lay in 
readiness to take them 
to the ship. It was 
necessary to lock him 
in his room until they 
had left their anchor- 
age and were steaming 
outside the harbor. 
" Of course you will 
naturally infer that the Spanish people are insincere in their politeness, 
and certainly appearances are against them. But they do not mean any- 
thing by it any more than the people of the United States do in their 
polite ways of speaking. There is this difference, that we do not go as 
far as the Spaniards in saying empty words, and that is about all. Doc- 
tor Bronson says there's a good deal of hollo wness in society everywhere ; 
that people could not get along at all together, and there would be no 
society at all if everybody spoke exactly what he thought at all times. 

" Think what would happen if Mrs. Smith should remajk to Mrs. 
Brown when the latter is leaving the house after a prolonged visit, ' I'm 




SEEING AND BEING SEEN. 



THE MARKET IN THE TIME OF CORTEZ. 183 

glad you're going; you've staid too long,' instead of saying and acting 
exactly the reverse ; and think, too, what would happen if Mr. Jones, on 
being introduced to Mr. Robinson, should say, 'I don't care a straw 
whether I know you or not,' instead of ' Glad to make your acquaintance,' 
or something of the sort.". 

One of tbe attractions of the Mexican capital is the market-place. 
There are several tneroados, or markets, in the city, the principal one 
being the Yolador, which is close to the ISTational Palace, and overlooked, 
as already mentioned, by one of the windows of the room which was 
Maximilian's favorite apa,rtment. History says it was for a long time the 
property of the family of Cortez, as it happened to be on a portion of the 
land which he secured at the division of the spoils of conquest. For 
nearly two hundred years the city paid rent to the heirs of the conqueror, 
and only in comparatively recent times bought the site, and now owns it 
in fee simple. 

Frank and Fred visited the market-place several times during their 
stay in the city ; in fact, it was one of their principal sources of amuse- 
ment. They were never tired of studying the ways of the natives who 
throng the place and offer their wares for sale, and they realized the force 
of what they read in one of the descriptions of Mexico, that the markets 
had changed very little since the days of Montezuma and the Aztec rule. 

Here is what Bernal Diaz wrote of the market as he saw it in 1519 : 

""We were astonished at the crowds of people and the regularity 
which prevailed, as well as at the vast quantities of merchandise which 
those who attended us were assiduous in pointing out. Each kind had its 
particular place, which was designated by a sign. The articles consisted 
of gold, silver, jewels, feathers, mantles, chocolate, skins dressed and un- 
dressed, sandals, and great numbers of male and female slaves, some of 
whom were fastened by the neck, in collars, to long poles. The meat 
market was stocked with fowls, game, and dogs. Vegetables, fruits, arti; 
cles of food ready-dressed, salt, bread, honey, and sweet pastry made in 
various ways, were also sold here. Other places in the square were ap- 
pointed to the sale of earthen-ware, wooden household furniture (such as 
tables and benches), firewood, paper, sweet canes filled with tobacco mixed 
with liquid amber, copper axes and working tools, and wooden vessels 
highly painted. J^umbers of women sold fish and little loaves made of 
a certain mud which they find in the lakes, and which resembles cheese. 
The makers of stone blades were busily employed shaping them out of 
the rough material, and the merchants who dealt in gold had the metal in 
grains as it came from the mines, in transparent quills, and the gold was 



184: 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



THE MARKET IN THE TIME OF CORTEZ. 



185 



valued at so many mantles, or so many xiquijpils of cocoa, according to 
tlie size of the quills. The entire square was enclosed in piazzas, under 
which great quantities of grain were stored, and where also were shops 
for various kinds of goods." 

" The description of the market by Bernal Diaz," wrote Fred in his 
journal, " would answer very well for to-day, so far as the appearance of 
the sellers and many of the buyers is concerned. They bring the prod- 
uce of their farms and gardens to market just as they brought it before 
Columbus discovered Arnerica, and the chief difference to-day is that 




INTERIOR OF A HOUSE NEAR THE MARKET-PLACE. 

slaves, gold, silver, feathers, and some other things named by Diaz are not 
now offered for sale. The Indians bring fowls and vegetables just as of 
old and in the same way — in baskets carried on their shoulders or on 
those of their family. Since the introduction of the railway some prod- 
uce comes to Mexico by train, and in course of time the old custom may 
disappear, but it will not do so in a hurry. 

" There is a canal from the lake to the city," wrote the youth, " and it 
comes directly to the market-place, so that the natives bring their boats 



186 



THE BOY TEAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



close to where they sell their wares. Much of the dealing takes place on 
board the boats or close to them, and the crowds that gather around while 
a bargain is in progress are very interesting. Some of the shops and stalls 
are at the very edge of the canal, so that the prows of the boats stick in 
among them, and you realize what a serious matter it would be to the 
market-people if by any accident the lake and the canal should be dried 




MEXICAN BIRD-SELLERS. 



up and disappear. The whole system of local supply would be radically 
changed, and until a new order of things could be established the inhabit- 
ants of the capital might run the risk of starvation. 

" The busiest day of the market is on Sunday, and the noise of the 
place is almost deafening. The ordinarily silent Mexican becomes very 
voluble in the market-place when there is a prospect of making something 
by talk. 

" The description we have given of the market of Monterey will an- 
swer for this one, with the exception that you must multiply everything 
by ten or twenty, and add several things we did not see there. One part 
of the market is devoted to the sale of coffins ; they are made on the spot, 
and had a specially sombre appearance to us, as they are all painted black. 
The shops in which they are made are in a narrow alley, and the workmen 



CANALS AND CHINAMPAS. 



187 




VIEW ON THE CANAL. 



engaged in the dreary industry seemed as unconcerned as did the makers 
of furniture or picture-frames. 

" We hired a canoe and took a short ride on the canal. Its banks are 
low and marshy ; they are devoted to the culture of vegetables, and the 
gardens had a luxuriant appearance, as though the soil was prolific. The 
lake, as before said, is brackish and shallow ; formerly it contained the fa- 
mous chinmn2Xis, or floating gardens, but when we asked for them we were 
told they did not now exist, though the name is retained. We will say 
more about them later on. 

" Disappointed in one of the objects. of our journey, we settled down to 
an enjoyment of the sights of the canal ; but our pleasure was a good deal 
marred by the number of smells the boatmen stirred up from the bottom. 



188 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



" How old the canal is nobody can tell ; it was in use long before the 
Conquest, for when Cortez came here the boats of the Aztecs were plying 
on its waters, and he observed the activity of the local commerce when 
he walked along the banks while he was the guest of Montezuma. There 
are little villages near the canal ; they are the homes of the people who 

till the gardens and 
supply the markets 
of the city with veg- 
etables, and with 
grass for horses and 
other quadrupeds. 

"To see the chi- 
nampas it was neces- 
sary to go to Santa 
Anita, or better still, 
to the lakes Xochi- 
milco and Chalco. 
Santa Anita is a sort 
of Coney Island with- 
out its ocean, a place 
of recreation for the 
middle and lower 
classes, especially on 
Sundays and feast 
days. "VVe went there 
on a week-day, when 
it was comparatively 
quiet ; a gentleman 
who lives here says 
that on Sunday the 
place is crowded with 
people, all bent on 
amusing themselves. 
The first thing they 
do on arriving is to 
deck themselves with wreaths of poppies and other flowers, which are 
sold for next to nothing and grow here in great abundance. After ob- 
taining a supply of flowers they dance, drink pulque, eat tamals and other 
Mexican delicacies, and have a thoroughly good time as they understand 
it.- There are other villages of the same sort farther along the canal. 




RESIDENCE ON THE BANKS OF THE CANAL. 



NAVIGATION OF A CANAL. 



189 



but they are not so well patronized by the Sunday excursionists as Santa 
Anita. 

" We seemed to ' take our lives in our hands ' in starting on our jour- 
ney to the lakes, as we had a scene with the boatmen at the bank of the 
canal which was anything but agreeable. We had been told that we ought 
not to pay more than two dollars for a boat for the entire day ; the men 
began by demanding five or six dollars, and as all talked at once, and each 
tried to persuade us to patronize him, and leave the others to look else- 
where for patronage, we had an active time for a while. The men would 
not abate their demands, and we walked away ; then they reduced their 




SUNDAY DIVERSIONS AT SANTA ANITA. 



figures, and after ten or fifteen minutes spent in bargaining, we secured a 
craft. It was about twelve feet long and four wide, flat-bottomed, had an 
awning over the centre where we could sit in the shade but could not 
stand erect, and was propelled by means of two boatmen working poles in 
the bow. They pushed with their poles against the bottom or sides of the 
canal, and thus sent the craft along, at the same time stirring up the mud 
and several dozens of vile smells. 



190 



THE BOY TEAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




CREW OF A CARGO-BOAT. 



" We met and passed other boats of the same kind, and also small clia- 
lupas, or canoes, containing one or two persons, and resembling narrow 
dugouts more than anything else. Then we met cargo-boats of various 
kinds, some piled high with grass, and others with heaps of baskets or 
sacks in the centre, and propelled by several men who patiently poled the 
craft along. 

" Frank made a sketch of the crew of one of the cargo-boats at their 
work. While going forward they carried the poles horizontally above 
their heads ; on reaching the bow of the boat, each man fixed his pole in 
the mud at the bottom, and then rested his. shoulder firmly against the 
upper end ; this done, he walked slowly aft, thus propelling the boat ; and 
as one set of men went aft while the other was going forward, the boat 
made steady progress through the water. Doctor Bronson said it was a 
reminder of the navigation of the Mississippi before the days of steam- 
boats. 

" The chinampas as they exist to-day are in the neighborhood of 
Santa Anita and along the sides of the canal all the way to the lake. 
The ground is low and marshy, and in ancient times was probably a part 
of the lake or of the great body of water that covered most of the valley. 
The chinampas are masses of vegetation, reeds, and bushes covered with 



HOW A FLOATING GARDEN IS MADE. 



191 



soil above, and tliey are so loosely fastened that tliej rise and fall with 
the changes of the height of water. Tliej are said to have been formerly 
drifted about by the winds and waves, and were then really chinampas ; 
now they are made fast by means of poles, and their owners know where 
to find them. An excellent description of these marvels is to be found 
on page 159 of Mr. Brocklehurst's book, and we take the liberty of copy- 
ing it : 

" ' When a tract of vegetation, composed of reeds, water-plants, and 
bushes interwoven and laced together, becomes so dense that it will bear 
a superstructure, strips of turf twenty to thirty yards long by two yards 
wide are cut from some suitable firm place, floated to it down the canal. 




'^ai^'^- ' 



CHINAMPAS, OR FLOATING GARDENS. 



and laid upon it. This is repeated several times, and thus an island is 
securely raised two to three feet above the level of the water. A little 
soil is spread over it, and it becomes a chinainpa, or floating garden, on 
which Indian corn, vegetables, and flowers are grown. The gardens vary 
in size from one to two hundred feet in length, and from twenty to a hun- 
dred feet in width, according to the nature of the vegetation which sup- 
ports them. 



192 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



" ' The Lakes Chalco and Xochimilco are covered with this sort of veg- 
etation. The lakes have a varying depth of from ten to fifteen feet, and 
to secure the gardens in their proper places long willow poles are driven 
through them into the ground below, where they soon take root. The 
poles also throw out roots into the bed of the floating gardens, and so hold 
them steady.' 

" It is said that thieves pursued by soldiers or the police have been 
known to dive under these chinampas and come up on the other side. Any 




peon's house on a chinampa. 



enterprising citizen of the United States who thinks of coming to Mexico 
for a life of crime would do well to become an expert swimmer and diver 
before venturing into this country. 

" These gardens become firm enough in a few years to support men, 
dwelling-houses, and even horned cattle and horses, although the water 
continues to circulate freely beneath them. The Government taxes the 
inhabitants or owners sufficiently to pay the expense of maintaining an 
inspector and several assistants. The chinampas are separated by narrow 
canals, and the duties of the inspecting party are to keep the canals free 
from weeds, and see that the islands are properly fastened so that they 
cannot drift about with the wind." 

We may add to the story of the youth that at the time of the Conquest 



THE HILL OF ESTEELLA. 



193 




CACTUS GRO\YTHS NEAR THE HILL OF ESTRELLA. 



there were thousands of these chinampas, and they annnallj paid a good 
revenue to the Aztec authorities. The Yalley of Mexico appears to have 
been more densely peopled at that time than it is to-day, as every inch of 
solid earth was tilled to its fullest capacity, and the necessity arose for 
utilizing the marshes and also the surface of the lakes. In the days of 
Oortez the floating gardens covered Lake Tezcoco, but as time has gone 
on they have disappeared from that brackish sheet, and are now practically 
confined to the two lakes we have mentioned and the canals leading to 
them. 

Our young friends kept a sharp watch for the Hill of Estrella, and 

there was a good-natured rivalry between them as to who should be the 

first to discover it. Frank was the fortunate one in this instance, for he 

caught a glimpse of the conical peak while Fred was looking in the wrong 

13 



194 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



direction. It is of porphyritic sandstone, and about 500 feet in height ; 
the sides are steep in some places, and here and there it is possible to dis- 
cover some of the old masonry which converted the hill into a huge teo- 
calli like the Pyramid of Cheops. 

The modern village is at the base of the hill, and there the youths 
landed and engaged horses to carry them to the summit. The view is 




KOCK INSCRIPTIONS MADE BY ANCIENT AZTECS. 



quite extensive, and shows a wide area of lakes and valley, and the mount- 
ains that engirdle them. But they would hardly have made the ascent of 
Estrella for the view alone ; it was rather because the place has an ancient 
fame, and was at one time the most sacred in Mexico. 

" We have mentioned elsewhere," said Frank, " that the Mexicans had 
ages, or cycles, of fifty-two years, and at the end of each cycle they had 
an unusual ceremonj'', the Festival of Fire, which was not repeated till the 
end of another cycle. Well, this hill was the scene of the ceremony, whicli 
was held on the evening that the constellation of the Pleiades approached 
the zenith. According to Prescott's history of the conquest of Mexico, 
a procession of priests on that evening led a noble victim, a captive of the 



A FISH DINNER. 



195 



highest rank, to be sacrificed on the hill of Estrella. For five dajs pre- 
vious the people had extinguished all their fires in their temples and dwell- 
ings, broken their idols, and given themselves up to despair, as they were 
taught that the world was coining to an end. 

" After the Pleiades had passed the zenith the victim was slaughtered, 
and a new fire was kindled by the friction of sticks in his wounded breast. 
Then couriers stood ready with torclies, which were lighted at the new fire, 
and from the hill of Estrella it was carried all through the kingdom. For 
thirteen days following this event there was general festivity everywhere ; 
and the Festival of Fire may be considered the national carnival of the 
Aztecs." 

Frank and Fred were naturally eager to ascertain what kind of fishes 
were to be found in the lakes, and they learned in a very practical way. 
Near Estrella they saw some men fishing with rod and line, and at their 
suggestion one of the boatmen obtained some of the fish, which proved to 
be a species of trout. They were not more than three or four inches long, 
and in order to cook them the boatman made a charcoal fire in the bottom 
of his craft. The fish were fried on the coals, and were remarkably fat 
and juic}^ The youths thought they had not in a long time tasted any- 
thing so delicious, but the Doctor reminded them that they were hungry, 
and since early in the morning had been out in the open air. 




HOME SCENE NEAR THE LAKE. 



196 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

There are several varieties of fish in tlie fresh-water Jakes of the Yal- 
ley of Mexico, but in the salt or brackish Lake Tezcoco there is only one 
kind, and some people think he is not entitled to be called a fish. He is 
shaped like one, but has four legs and a long, eel-like tail. He belongs 
more properly to the lizard family than to that of the fishes, and is a dis- 
gusting object to contemplate. He grows to about ten inches in length. 
Frank thought he should go hungry a long time rather than eat of this 
reptile, who is called axolotl in the Aztec tongue, and ajolote by the 
Spaniards. 

" Does anybody venture to eat this creature?" Fred asked. 
" Certainly," answered his informant ; " the Indians eat its flesh, which 
resembles that of an eel. White men who have got over their prejudice 
say it is toothsome, and many a stranger has devoured axolotl under the 
name of fried eel, and enjoyed it too." 

"There's a great deal in a name and in prejudice," was the youth's 
commentary as he changed the subject to something else. 

That something was a peculiar article of food even stranger than axo- 
lotl. Its scientific name is Ahuatlea 3£exicana, and it consists of the 
eggs of a peculiar flj^, which are deposited on the reeds and rushes grow- 
ing in the shallow places along the borders of the lake. 
A traveller who visited Mexico two and a half centu- 
ries ago wrote of this substance as follows: 

" The Indians gathered much of this and kept it in 
Heaps, and made thereof Cakes like unto Brick-bats, 
and they did eat this with as good a Stomach as we eat 
Cheese ; yea, and they hold Opinion that this Scum, or 
Fatness, of the "Water is the Cause that such great num- 
ber of Fowl cometli to the Lake, which in the winter 
A DEAD FLY. Scasou Is Infinite." 

Custom has not changed in two hundred and fifty 
years. They sell these "cakes like nnto brick-bats" in the markets of 
Mexico to-day, and the Indians eat the stuff with good relish. It bears 
some resemblance to fine fish-roe ; and after all, prejudice again being re- 
moved, and one being hungry, it is not bad eating. The Indians gather 
these insects by myriads and pound them into paste, which is afterwards 
wrapped in corn-husks, and forms an article of food second only to the one 
just mentioned. The laying capacity of the insect, which is about the 
size of an ordinary fly, is something marvellous, surpassing the abilities 
of the choicest fowls that ever were reared. 

" You may judge how abundant these insects are," said Frank, " when 




THE LEAKY LAKE. 



197 



I tell you they settle down so thickly on the water that we thought they 
were shoals, or mud-banks ! Fortunately for us, they didn't sting, nor did 
they even settle on the boat." 

In one of his letters to the King describing the country he had con- 
quered Cortez gave a minute account of the lakes in the neighborhood 
of Tenochtitlan, and naturally mentioned the fact that they had no out- 
let. He solved the mystery of the disappearance of the waters by gravely 
declaring that there was a large hole in the bottom of Lake Tezcoco 
by which the lake was drained. A century later an engineer was sent 
from Spain to find the hole in the bottom of the lake. He made many 
surveys, but was unable to discover it, and finally concluded that the 
surplus water was carried off by evaporation. 




RUINS OF A TOLTEC HOUSE. 



198 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

COURTSHIP IN MEXICO.—" PLAYING THE BEAR."— LOVERS' TROUBLES.— A SHORT 
ROAD TO MATRIMONY.— PRESENTS TO THE EXPECTANT BRIDE.— THE MARRIAGE 
CEREMONY. — TEDIOUS PRELIMINARIES. — CIVIL AND RELIGIOUS MARRIAGES.— 
DIFFERENCES OF MARRIAGE AMONG THE COMMON PEOPLE AND THE UPPER 
CLASSES.— A HAND-BOOK FOR LOVERS. — FUNERALS ; HOW THEY ARE MAN- 
AGED.— CARDS OF CONDOLENCE.— CEMETERIES.— MONUMENT TO AMERICAN SOL- 
DIERS.— ANNUAL DEATH-RATE IN MEXICO CITY.— PREVALENT DISEASES.— DO- 
MESTIC SERVANTS ; THEIR NUMBER, WAGES, AND MODE OF LIFE.— A PECULIAR 
LAUNDRY SYSTEM. 

OKE daj wliile Frank and Fred were strolling along the streets, ob- 
serving the people and their ways, studying the architecture, and 
making other observations, according to their custom, their attention was 
drawn to a young man who was walking slowly 
up and down in front of a house. His movements 
were so peculiar that Frank asked their guide what 
the man was about. 

" Oh, he's playing the bear !" was the reply. 
"And what is 'playing the bear?' I would like 
to know," the youth responded. 

" He's making love," the guide explained ; " that's 
the Mexican way of courtship." 

This was a subject of special interest to the 
youths, as they knew their sisters and all the other 
young ladies at home would wish to know about 
it. Accordingly, they proceeded to inform them- 
selves concerning the Mexican form of wooing, and 
here is the result of their inquiries : 

" Courtship in this country," wrote Frank, " is 
a serious matter, and requires a great deal of pa- 
tience. Young ladies are carefully secluded from 
anything more than the most formal acquaintance 
with 3^oung men, and there is no such thing here as the freedom of so- 
cial manners that we have at home. When a young man has fixed his 
thoughts upon a fair damsel whom he has met at a party, or to whom he 




A FORTUNATE BEAR. 



COUKTSHIP UNDEK DIFFICULTIES. 



199 



has been introduced in 
the Zocalo, lie begins 
his courtship by walk- 
ing up and down the 
street in front of her 
house and keeping his 
eyes fixed on one of 
the balconies, which 
he has somehow ascer- 
tained is the proper 
one for his gaze. A 
hint has been conveyed 
to the young 
lady that he 
will be there, 




and also to her 
parents and sis- 
ters. This hint 
may be given 
by the priest, 
who frequently 
serves as an in- 
termediary ; by 
some relative of 
the young man ; 
I or by means of 
a note sent to 
the young lady herself 
through the medium of 
the ])ortero^ or door-keep- 
er, whose trouble must be 
paid for with cash in ad- 
vance. 

"This promenading in 
front of the house is kept 
up for hours at a time day 
after day, and also at night, 
■" and is what is called ' play- 
ing the bear.' It is gener- 
ally done on foot, but sometimes the 
lover appears on horseback, the lady 
havilig been notified, through the sub- 
MExicAN COURTSHIP. sldizcd portcio, at what hour he may 

be expected. 
"The lover is observed by the lady and her mother and the other 
feminine members of the family, who sit inside the window and are par- 
tially, if not wholly, screened from sight. If the match is favored by the 




200 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



parents the 'bear business' 
lasts only a month, or per- 
liaps two or three months ; 
but if it is not so favored 
the lover may keep it up 
for a long time, or until 
he gets discouraged and 
withdraws his suit. Of 
course it happens here as 
in other countries that 
parental opposition occa- 
sionally develops the 
young lady's affection, 
and then the young cou- 
ple resort to all sorts 
of stratagems to ex- 
change hillets-doux. 
Letters are raised or 
lowered by means of 
strings, or transmit- 
ted through the 
hands of the portero 
already mentioned. ^ 
In the case of pa- 
rental opposition the 
portero runs a great - 
risk, and consequent- 
ly must be highly paid. 
Courtship under such 
circumstances is a lux- 
ury that only the afflu- 
ent can afford. 

" AVhen the proper 
time arrives, provided 
everything is running 
.smoothly, the young 
man, accompanied by a 
gentleman friend older 
than himself, calls . on 
the father of the girl, 



~»v;-^!»!^. 




CODE-SIGNALLIXG WITH THE FAN. 



ENGAGEMENT AND MAERIAGE. 



201 






and makes a proposal for lier hand. The father says he will see about 
it, and the visitors take their leave. 

"The father asks the girl if she desires to many the young man. 
However much she may 
desire to do so she must ^^^^^ 
profess indifference and 
say she cannot tell until 
she has met him. Then 
he is invited to call, and 
wlien he responds he is 
met by the entire family, 
including the servants. 
After he becomes the no- 
vio qficial, or accepted lov- 
er, he has the privilege of 
calling without a friend ; 
but at no time is he ever 
left for a moment alone 
with the young lady. All 
interviews must be in the 
presence of a member of 
the family or of a duenna, 
no matter how long the 
courtship may continue af- 
ter the formal acceptance. 

"As the time for the 
marriage ceremony ap- 
proaches the groom has a 
serious matter to contem- 
plate — the ' matter o' mon- 
ey ' connected with matri- 
mony. He must furnish 
the house and home, and 
also buy the bridal outfit. 
ISTot infrequently the par- 
ents of the bride relieve 
him of a part of the ex- 
pense, though they allow 
him to buy the jewels and 
bridal dresses. One thing that he must provide, according to a long- 







"there he is." 



202 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



established custom, is an ivory -covered prayer-book; whatever else he 
fails in he must not be negligent in this. Eight or ten weeks before the 
ceremony, the pair must register at church, giving their names, ages, etc., 
very much as they do in some of the American States. A similar regis- 
try is made at the civil office. The banns must be published for five 
Sundays, and the bride must state before the priest and a notary that she 
marries 'of her own free-will.' The civil marriage takes place a few 
days before the ceremony in the church, and when the matter is ended 
the young couple are fairly launched into wedded life." 

" Hadn't you better say something," Fred remarked, " about the cere- 
mony itself ?" 

" That's hardly necessary," replied Frank, " as it is not much unlike 
the ceremony in all Catholic countries, and has been described over and 
over again. There are some local customs, however, 
that may be worth noting; for instance, a lady de- 
scribes a wedding that she saw here in a church, 
where the groom passed several gold coins into the 
bride's hands, as an indication that she was to raan- 
affe their financial affairs. But the chances are more 
than even that he did not permit her to do any- 
thing of the kind. When they knelt at the altar a 
silken scarf was put around their shoulders and a 
silver cord around their necks, to indicate their com- 
plete union." 

" A cynical commentator might say," observed 
Fred, " that the silver cord indicated that the cou- 
ple was united by financial considerations." 

" That's something I've nothing to do with," an- 
swered Frank, quietly; "we'll go on with our description. But it is said 
that marriages in Mexico depend more on social, family, or business mat- 
ters than upon sentiment." 

"After the church ceremony," he continued, "there is a festival to 
which intimate friends are invited. Then the pair send cards to all friends 
and reasonably intimate acquaintances announcing their marriage, and the 
notice winds up with an equivalent for the ' at home ' card of married 
couples in the United States and England. 

" And one thing more," added Frank, " while we are on this subject. 
A woman who never marries is not stigmatized as an 'old maid,' as is often 
the case in the Northern States. Nobody ever thinks of suggesting that 
she has never had an offer of marriao;e ; the remark about her always is 




A STUDENT OF " EL SECRE 
TARIO." 



THE LOVERS' HAND-BOOK. 



203 



that ' she is difficult to suit ' even though no man may ever have thought 
of showing her any attention. 

" Of course, you understand that in the marriage just described I had 
the upper classes in mind. Among the common people there is much less 
ceremony and formality ; marriages are generally arranged by the parish 
priest, who conducts the principal part of the negotiations, and he has also 




MEXICAN WEDDING IN THE COUNTRY. 



a great deal to say on the subject among the middle, or tradesman, class. 
There is as much feasting and revelry as the parties can afford, and gener- 
ally more than is prudent for them. Sometimes matches are made up by 
the parents of the young couple, without any consultation with them ; but 
as children in this country are obedient to their parents, they are very un- 
likely to make any opposition to matches thus arranged." 

Frank invested a real in a pamphlet called " El Secretario de los 
Amantes," or, to translate somewhat freely, " the hand-book of lovers." It 
is probably the most widely circulated book in the Mexican republic, and 
is as popular among young people as is " The Complete Letter-Writer," 
among those whose education has not been all they could wish, and who 
have occasion for epistolary correspondence. 



204 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



The earnest attention wliicli was given to tliis little work as soon as it 
fell into the hands of the youths led to a suspicion on the part of the Doc- 
tor that Frank and Fred meditated a little love-making on their own ac- 
count, by way of experiment. But so far as we have been informed, noth- 
ing of the kind occurred ; should 













FLOWERS FOR A LADY. 



any later information on the sub- 
ject come to hand, it will be duly 
set forth in the second edition of 
" The Boy Travellers in Mexico." 
The " Secretario " contains a 
code of cipher writing, forms for 
using numerals in place of the let- 
ters of the alphabet, symbols for 
each of the twenty-four hours of 
the day and night or the fractions 
thereof, and the one-hand alphabet 
for deaf-mutes. The necessity for 
this alphabet in love-making, and 
the practice that comes from it, 
may probably be the reason why 
many Spanish- Americans occasion- 
ally make signs in conversation, 
instead of speaking in words. There are chapters of advice to lovers, and 
there is a fulfsignal code for the use of the fan, the handkerchief, the som- 
brero, and the glove. Spanish women have long been famed for their skill 
with the fan, and for the conversations they can conduct with its aid, and 
it has a very important place in the language of love. 

In most editions of the book there is a separate chapter on the lan- 
guage of flowers and their various meanings accordingly as they are ar- 
ranged or combined with others. A love-story can be told in the skil- 
ful construction of a bouquet — at least enough of it to form the opening 
chapter. There is also a language of fruits, and Fred suggested that there 
should be one of tortillas, frijoles, tamals, and other articles of the Mexi- 
can cuisine. 

" Here is a wide range," said he, " for the author of ' El Secretario.' 
Provide each of the lovers with a thermometer, and then the temperature 
of a tortilla, as it is tossed into or out of a window, can be made to express 
a great deal. Forty degrees Fahrenheit might mean, 'My love is cold,' and 
one hundred and twenty degrees would say, 'I'm sighing like the furnace.' 
Ninety degrees signifies, 'Look out for the old gentleman,' and one hun- 



FUNERAL CEREMONIES, 



205 



dred would literally say, 'I'm up to par.' The new edition of the book, 
with the tortilla annex, ought to sell like — " 

" Like hot cakes," Frank remarked, and then the subject of matrimony 
was dropped. 

The youths next considered the subject of the funeral, a ceremony with 
which the Church has quite as much to do as with weddings. It was Fred's 
turn to make an investigation, and commit his information to writing, and 
the following is the result .of his efforts : 

" One of the odd things about funerals in this city," wrote the youth, 
" is that they go by rail to the cemetery. The enterprising manager of the 
street railways formed his scheme, and then bought up all the hearses, so 




FDXERAL or GENERAL DOBLADO, GUANAJUATO. 



as to compel the populace to adopt his plan. There was opposition to it 
at lirst, but a short trial showed that it was much more economical than 
the old system. There is a good service of funeral cars, and they are grad- 
uated to suit all purses that have any money at all in them. The range of 
prices is from three to one hundred and twenty dollars; for the lowest sum 
a single car drawn by a mule is supplied, and for the highest figure one 
may have a hearse-car, gorgeously draped, plumed, and liveried, drawn by 
a pair of black horses, and with attendants appropriately liveried and of 



206 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

most solemn countenance. The hearse-car is followed by two, and per- 
haps three cars, containing the mourners, friends of the deceased, and oth- 
ers, who go to make up the funeral cortege, and these cars are as appropri- 
ately draped as the hearse. Ranging between the highest and lowest ligures 
are half a dozen or even more ' outfits,' so that any desires can be met. 

" Another curious custom is that poor people rent handsome coffins 
to be used during the funeral ceremony, the body being transferred to a 
plain unpainted box as soon as it reaches the cemetery. 

" Funeral cards are printed in the newspapers along with the adver- 
tisements, and sometimes they have been inadvertently placed among the 
' amusements.' They are also posted on the street corners and in other 
places where they can be seen, and printed cards heavily bordered with 
black are sent to relatives and friends. There is a fashionable card form 
for a funeral as much so as for a wedding, and it would be a great social 
blunder to vary from the conventional style. Friends and relatives must 
respond to these cards, and any one who has a large circle of acquaintance 
is obliged to write a good many notes of condolence in the course of a 
year. 

"When we first arrived in the city we were somewhat surprised at 
the large number of people in mourning, until we learned that mourning 
is worn not only for relatives but for friends, and there is a prescribed 
time for which it must be worn in each case. Suppose a school-girl's 
father or mother dies, her companions put on mourning for fifteen days; 
if the girl herself dies they go into mourning for a month. The same 
rule 'holds throughout society, and there is also a rule that when one 
visits a house where the family is in mourning, the visitor must be cos- 
tumed in mourning also. The result is that fashionable people are in 
mourning for a goodly part of the year, and a mourning suit, or dress, is 
a necessity for everybody's wardrobe. 

" It is not the custom generally for ladies to attend funerals, but they 
send cards of condolence and make visits oi jpesame (regret) immediately 
after the ceremony. Families in mourning are secluded from society 
very much as in other civilized countries. 

" The old cemeteries which are now in the city limits are closed, and 
no more burials can be made there. They have a general resemblance to 
the cemeteries that we. described in chapter xxii. of ' The Boy Travellers 
in South America.' Those who can afford permanent burial for their 
relatives or friends take a perpetual lease of the niche where the corpse 
is deposited ; in such case the word ])ro])iedad is placed over the en- 
trance, along with the date when the entombment was made. If only a 



CEMETEEIES IN AND NEAR MEXICO CITY. 



207 



temporary lease is taken, the remains are removed at the end of five 
years to make room for a new tenant. The bones are either buried in 
one of the new cemeteries or thrown into a pit, where the bones of hun- 
dreds who once breathed the air and walked the streets of Mexico are 
indiscriminately mingled. The new cemeteries are laid out in modern 
fashion ; we visited those of Campo Florida and La Piedad and saw some 




SOLDIERS MONUMENT IN THE AMERICAN CEMETERY. 



very tasteful tombs, which indicated. to us both the tender remembrance 
of the Mexicans for their dead and the skill of the designers of the monu- 
ments. 

""VYe have also visited the English, French, German, and American. 
cemeteries ; all of them have recently increased their population with 
greater rapidity than formerly, owing to the influx of foreigners. In the 
American cemetery our attention was specially drawn to the monument 
which marks the resting-place of four hundred soldiers who fell in the 
attack upon Mexico, the circumstance of their death being told by a 
brief inscription. The English and American cemeteries are side by side, 



208 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

and as time goes on it is probable that both will need additional 
ground. 

" A medical publication here gives the annual death-rate of the city 
of Mexico as about 37 in 1000, but it says that many Indians come here 
from the lower lands and die of exposure and the effects of the rarefied 
air at this great elevation. In one year recently there were 13,008 
deaths, of which 5577 were males and 6431 females ; 4292 deaths were 
from pneumonia, bronchitis, and pulmonary and tuberculous affections, 
and there were 179 deaths from small-pox. Diseases of the lungs are 
dreaded, and those who have resided here for any length of time take 
great precautions against them. It is not considered safe to remove the 
hat in the open air for any length of time, and a stranger should be very 
particular about venturing into a draught. He should also take care not 
to emerge suddenly from a dimly lighted room to the dazzling sunshine ; 
the air at this elevation is very pure, and the light is consequently strong. 
We have been told that persons neglecting this precaution have become 
permanently blind." 

Frank and Fred had learned, before being long in Mexico, that there 
were many things to be avoided in the rarefied air of the valley, or, if not 
avoided, they should be taken with caution. Ascending stair-ways, or other 
laborious exercise, at an elevation of 7600 feet had to be done with delib- 
eration, and the least unusual exertion was sure to put them out of breath. 
They were more sedate in their walking than in New York or other cities 
on or near the sea-level, and as for running, it was quite out of the ques- 
tion. Frank said he was sure that much of the traditional slowness of 
the people was due to their high elevation, and the need of taking things 
easily. 

" Yes," replied Fred, " tliat's probably why this is the land of manana. 
The people don't like exertion, and so they put off till to-morrow every- 
tliing that can be postponed, together with many things that have been 
positively promised for to-day." 

"If they had been in a more northerly climate," said Frank, "it is 
probable that the Mexicans would be more advanced than we find them. 
Their location in the tropics has not been to their advantage. The open- 
ing of our railways will connect them with northern climes, and if we can 
fill the Valley of Mexico with our atmosphere it may enable them to 
breathe quicker than they do now." 

The attention of the youths was turned from the elevation and atmos- 
phere to some of the customs of the country, which they had learned from 
their guide or from others. Tliey were told that it was estimated tliat 



HOUSEHOLD SERVANTS. 



209 



about one-fifth the population was in household or domestic service in one 
form or another, directly or indirectly. The direct form would include 
those attached to a household, the indirect those who supply water, wood, 
charcoal, and other necessities of life, or perform outside work for families 
or individuals. The wages are low, but a great many servants are em- 
ployed, so that the aggregate foots up to a large amount. 




TAKING THINGS EASY. 



" There are from ten to twenty servants employed in a house," wrote 
Fred, " and we are told that large establishments will have thirty or even 
more. It is very much here as we found it in India — a great number of 
people, each with an allotted thing to do, and a servant would risk losing 
his place rather than do anything that belonged to another. 
14 



210 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




IV 



"Here's a list," he added, " that I have copied from the description of 
a Mexican household by an American visitor: porter'o, door-keeper; co- 
chero, coachman ; lacayo, footman ; cctballerango, hostler ; raozo, man of 
all sorts of work ; cargador, public carrier ; camarista^ chamber-man in a 

hotel, or valet in a private house ; re- 
cfwwerera, • chamber-maid in a private 
house ; ama de Haves, house - keeper, 
' mistress of the keys ;' cocinera, cook ; 
galopina, kitchen girl ; pilmana, nurse- 
maid, 

" There are other servants, such as 
the onolendera, the woman who grinds 
the corn (for making tortillas) ; the cos- 
turera, sewing-woman ; or the plancha- 
dora, ironing-woman. The most impor- 
tant servant is the ])ovtero, who has 
general charge of the house, and some- 
times of a large building in wdiich sev- 
eral families live. He is the exact 
counterpart of the German door-keeper, 
and, like him, generally lives with his 
family in a narrow retreat, which is sit- 
uated so that he can command the 
entrance and observe who comes in or 
goes out. Servants do not change places as often as in England or the 
United States. It is by no means rare for them to spend their entire 
lives with a family ; their jDarents before them served it, and their chil- 
dren will do so when they themselves are gone. 

"The cook receives from two to five dollars a month, and chamber- 
maids and seamstresses the same. The men-servants are paid from ten 
dollars a month upwards, and out of their wages they are required to buy 
part of their food, and in some cases all of it. At least this is the theory, 
thougli the practice is that the employer really supports them, though in- 
directly. Servants are nearly always in debt to their employers, and this 
state of affairs is encouraged by law, as they are not allowed to leave a 
place as long as they are in debt. The only way in which this can be done 
is for the employer to assume the debt, pay the creditor, and then collect 
the amount by holding back a portion of the servant's wages each month 
till the obligation is discharged." 

When Fred read aloud the foreojoing account of the Mexican servants 



^{.,5^^ 



A CHARCOAL PEDDLER. 



THE LAUNDRY SYSTEM. 



211 



and their waj^s, Doctor Bronson suggested that he might add something 
about the lavanderas, or laundresses. 

" That's so," replied the youth ; " I had forgotten about them for the 
moment." Then he sat down and wrote as follows : 

" Some of the houses have laundries, where the washing is done ; but 
many dwellings are not thus provided, and the clothes are taken outside 
to be cleansed. In the smaller cities the w^ashing is done on the banks of a 
stream or lake ; the clothes being first put into a tub or box and soaked 
in water in which soap has been dissolved ; then they are pounded with 
sticks or stones and rubbed with the hands. The work is not done with 
gentleness, and a few trips to the laundry generally wxar out garments 
made of ordinary material. Some of the lavanderas undertake to wash, 
starch, and iron the clothes, while others attend only to the washing, and 
leave the other work as a separate contract with the planchadora. The 
employer is generally expected to furnish soap for washing clothes, and 
very often the servants are supplied with it for their own use, in addition 
to their wages." 




A MEXICAN WASH-HOUSE. 



212 



THE BOY TRAVELLEKS IN MEXICO. 



CHAPTEK XIY. 

SCULPTURE AND PAINTING IN MEXICO.— NATIONAL SCHOOL OF THE FINE ARTS. 
—BRIEF HISTORY OF MEXICAN ART.— CELEBRATED PAINTINGS.— " LAS CASAS 
PROTECTING THE AZTECS."— " THE DEATH OF ATALA."— HOW AN ARTIST MAN- 
AGED TO SELL A PICTURE.— FROM ART TO FULQUSRIAS.— THE NATIONAL 
BEVERAGE OF MEXICO.— THE MAGUEY PLANT.— HOW PULQUE IS MADE.— COL- 
LECTING THE SAP.— FERMENTING A GUAi¥IBL. — DAILY CONSUMPTION OF 
PULQUE l}^ THE CITY OF MEXICO.— MANAGEMENT OF THE SHOPS.— ROMANTIC 
HISTORY OF THE INVENTION OF PULQUE.— ^mXlGA:^ POLICE-COURTS.— NOVEL 
MODE OF TRYING CASES.— THE BELEM PRISON.— CATALOGUE OF OFFENCES 
AGAINST THE LAW.— AN ADROIT THIEF.— RUNNING THE GANTLET. 

Ij^ROM laundriSs to the fine arts is a step from the practical to tlie 
■^ aesthetic. After finisliing their account of Mexican domestic service, 
Frank and Fred accompanied Doctor Bronson in a visit to the National 
Scliool of Fine Arts, which is commonly spoken of as the Academy of San 
Carlos. It must not be understood that this was their first visit to this 




THE LANDING OF COLUMBUS. 



MEXICAN ART HISTORY. 



213 



excellent institution ; they had been there several times, and it was their 
intention to continue to look at the paintings in the Academy whenever 
they had an hour or two to spare. 

. Within ten years after the arrival of Cortez a college was founded in 
the city of Mexico by one of the Franciscan brothers, and to this college 
departments of music and drawing were attached. This may be consid- 
ered the parent art school of Mexico, and from it is descended the Acad- 
emy of Fine Arts as we see it to- 
day. No great progress was made 
in art matters until near the end of 
the sixteenth century, when a Span- 
ish artist, Sebastian Arteaga, came 
to Mexico, and was shortly followed 
by Yasquez and Ecliave, the last- 
named being accompanied by his 
wife, who was an accomplished 
painter, and is traditionally said to 
have been Echave's teacher. 

The seventeenth century brought 
several artists from Spain, and they, 
did some good work; at the same 
time native talent began to assert it- 
self, and several artists and sculptors 
of Indian blood made for tliemselves 
lasting names. In the eighteenth 
century the most noted artist, who 
was also sculptor and architect, was 
Tresguerras, a native of Zelaya, in 
the State of Guanajuato, on the line 
of the Mexican Central Kail way, and 
he deserves more than passing men- 
tion. MKXICAN SCULPTURE. DOOR-WAY OP CHURCH OF 

The Church of Our Lady of Car- san josi^. 

men, at Zelaya, was designed by Tres- 
guerras, and is famous throughout Mexico for its beauty and artistic pro- 
portions. The tower and dome are especially the admiration of architects 
and artists, and the whole effect of the structure, whether in a near or a 
distant view, is most agreeable. The interior is adorned with frescoes and 
paintings in oil by Tresguerras, and he has been, not inappropriately, 
styled " the Michael Angelo of Mexico." 




214 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

Frank and Fred gleaned the foregoing information from Mr. Janvier's 
" Mexican Guide," during their first visit to the Academy, and they also 
learned from the same excellent authority that the present Academy had 
its actual beginning in 1779 through a school of engraving established in 
the mint. The success of the engraving school and the general interest in 
it caused the director of the mint to seek the permission of the viceroy to 
establish schools of painting, sculpture, and architecture ; and tlie permis- 
sion was readily granted. Later the matter was referred to the King, who 
issued, in December, 17S3, an order for the foundation of the Academy. 
On the 4th of November, 1785, the formal opening of the Academia de 
las Nobles Artes de San Carlos de la Nueva Espana took place, and this 
is the institution which the youths visited on repeated occasions when- 
ever they had any spare time on their hands. It is proper to say that the 
school was originally opened in the mint, but in 1791 it was removed to 
the building where it now is. 

Like most other institutions of Mexico, it has had many ups and downs, 
consequent upon the political changes through which the country has 
passed. At present it has an allowance of about $35,000 annually from 
the Government, and is regularly a Government affair, its name having 
been changed in 1868 to the National School of the Fine Arts. Prizes are 
given for meritorious work by the students, all tuition is free, and there is 
an average attendance of about one hundred throughout the year. One 
prize which is specially sought is an allowance of $600 a year for six 
years to enable the recipient to study art in Italy. Within the last few 
years night classes have been established for working-people, and have 
been well attended. 

" We will not undertake to give you a list of all the paintings we saw," 
wrote Frank, " nor even a part of them, as in any event it would be tedious 
to anybody at a distance. The pictures are arranged, in three large gal- 
leries and two small ones, and they are grouped together according to 
their age and the nativity of their painters. One gallery contains paintings 
by the old masters of Europe, another is devoted to old Mexican masters, 
and another to pupils of the Academy. 

" The finest picture in the last-named collection, that of the pupils of 
the Academy, is by Felix Parra, and is entitled 'Las Casas protecting the 
Aztecs.' Parra painted it before he had seen any country except Mexico, 
and he received the first prize at the Academy of Rome on account of the 
merit displayed in this work. I will not attempt to describe the painting, 
but send a photograph by which you may judge of it. The coloring is, of 
course, lost in the photograph, but you can get an idea of the drawing and 



A FAMOUS PAINTING. 



215 




LAS CASAS PROTECTING THE AZTECS. 



216 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

the sentiment of the picture. Las Casas is represented standing on tlie 
steps of a teocalli, and at his feet is the dead body of a Mexican chief, who 
has been slain by the Spaniards ; while an Aztec woman clings imploringly 
to the robe of the priest. 

" The painting is a historic one, and the story it illustrates is this : 

"Las Casas was a Spanish prelate who accompanied Columbus to the 
West Indies and afterwards came to Mexico. He was horrified at the 
treatment of the natives by their conquerors, and he crossed the ocean no 
less than twelve times to intercede with the King of Spain in their behalf. 
He was unsuccessful in nearly all his efforts, though he finally persuaded 
the Emperor Charles Y. to make some effort to redress the wrongs which 
the Indians were suffering at the hands of the Spaniards. He risked his 
life on many occasions on behalf of the natives, as we read in Prescott's 
histories, and when the Emperor offered him the bishopric of Cuzco, one 
of the ricliest appointments in the Spanish colonies, he declined it and 
accepted that of Chiapas, one of the poorest and most ignorant. He died 
in Madrid in 1566, at the age of ninety-two years. 

"Every time we visit the gallery we linger in front of this picture, 
and are never weary of admiring and studying it. Many good critics 
pronounce it not only the best painting in the gallery where it hangs, 
but the best in the entire collection of the Academy. This is high praise, 
indeed, when we remember that the Academy has works by Leonardo da 
Yinci, Miirillo, Rubens, Correggio, and Yelasquez. 

" Another fine painting of the modern Mexican school is the ' Death 
of Atala.' Felix Parra is represented by other works in addition to the 
Las Casas ; one of these is ' The Massacre in the Temple,' which also has 
historic value. It illustrates the butchery of the natives in the temple 
by Alvarado, whom Cortez had left at the capital city while he personally 
went to the coast to meet the ships and troops that had been sent from 
Cuba to reinforce the invading army. As the history of Mexico was 
closely identified with the Church down to within twenty years or so, it 
naturally occurs that nearly all the paintings of former days are of a 
religious character, just as we find the paintings in the galleries of Eu- 
rope." 

One day in their visit to the Academy the youths met a gentleman 
to whom they had been previously introduced, and one of them asked if 
the wealthy people of Mexico gave much encouragement to native art. 

" I'm sorry to say they do not," was the reply. " It has not yet be- 
come the fashion to buy modern paintings, but some of our rich men are 
setting the example, and as the country becomes developed and more 



PAINTINGS AND PULQUERIAS. 



217 



wealthy, tlie example may be followed. But just at present tlie best pa- 
trons of art are the pulque shops, and as their patrons are not very critical 
it does not require a higli talent to meet their wants. In private houses 
there is a greater demand for huge mirrors than for fine paintings, and 
the value of the plate-glass mirrors in the city of Mexico is far beyond 
that of the modern works of art to be found here. Ma*iy an artist of 
fair promise has been obliged to abandon tlie dream of his life, and 
obtain a living by painting for the pulque rias, or selling silk and woollens 
behind the counter of a shop." 




THE DEATH OF ATALA. 



The gentleman then told a story of a native artist who had painted a 
canvas some eight feet by six, representing " Tlie Landing of Columbus." 
Months and months passed and lie could not find a purchaser though he 
lowered his price to half its original figure; then at the advice of a 
friend he made a few changes in the ships, costumes, coloring, and 
scenery, and entitled the picture "Evacuation of Mexico by the French." 
In less than a w^eek he found a customer w^ho made not the least objec- 
tion to the price which was set upon the work. 



218 



THE BOY TRAVELLEES IN MEXICO. 



The mention of pulqnerias naturally drew attention to those estab- 
lishments, which abound in Mexico as do beer shops in New York. Fred 
undertook an essay concerning them and the substance in which they 
deal. 

"Pulque is the product of the Agave Mexioana, or maguey plant," 
wrote the youth, "and a description of Mexico without a reference to it 
would be like 'Hamlet' without Hamlet. It is the beverage of Mexico 
as beer is that of Germany and wine the drink of France. Along the 




A SUCCESSFUL ARTIST AT WORK. 



line of the railway, as we were coming southward, we passed many fields 
of maguey, and several times we saw the collectors gathering the juice of 
the plant for conversion into pulque. 

" ISTobody knows when pulque was invented, as it was in use here cen- 
turies before Cortez was born. There are many fables concerning it, and 
like most fables of the kind, the discovery of the use which could be made 
of the juice of the maguej^ is generally attributed to the gods. One more 
practicable fable is that a Toltec noble discovered it and sent some of the 
pulque to the King, by the hand of his daughter, Xochitl. The King was 
so delighted with the drink and the maiden that he swallowed the former 
and married the latter, and their son succeeded him as king. This was the 
beginning of the downfall of the Toltecs and their extinction as a nation, 



ORIGIN OF THE " COCKTAIL." 



219 



but the art of making pulque was not lost ; the name of the lovely Xochitl 
has been preserved in the Aztec name of the beverage, ochtl. During our 
war with Mexico the soldiers under Generals Taylor and Scott drank the 
liquid, and in attempting to pronounce its Aztec name they generally got 




MAGUEY PLANT. 



no nearer to it than ' cocktail.' They carried the word back to the States, 
and Doctor Bronson tells us that it is occasionally lieard there at this day 
in clubs and hotels, where it is applied to beverages in which spirits, bit- 
ters, and other ingredients are mingled. 

" The maguey belongs to the cactus family of plants, and there are 
said to be forty varieties of it. Twenty-two yield aguamiel, or honey- 
water, from which pulque is made, and the others are used for hedges 
and for making paper, cords, and other things. In former times the na- 
tives are said to have had not less than a hundred uses for the maguey 
plant in addition to its production of pulque. They made paper from 
the pulp of the leaves, cords and thread from the fibre, needles from the 
thorns, shingles and troughs from the leaves, and the little clothing they 
wore was generally made from the thread derived from the maguey. 
The leaves are sometimes ten feet long by a foot wide, and like the leaves 
of the other members of the cactus family, they are of great thickness, 

" When the maguey plant is about ten years old it sends up a single 



220 



THE BOY TRAVELLEKS IN MEXICO. 




THE TLACHIQUEEO. 



PULQUE SCIENTIFICALLY CONSIDERED. 221 

stalk in the centre which often rises to a height of twenty-five or thirty 
feet. This stalk is covered with flowers, hundreds and sometimes thou- 
sands of them, and they are of a yellowish green color. After blossom- 
ing the plant dies, very much as does the sago-tree and some other tropi- 
cal growths ; a single blossoming is all that it is capable of in its lifetime. 
And here is where the pulque comes in, or, rather, comes out. 

" The Indians watch the plants closely when the flower-stalk is ex- 
pected to appear, and just at the right time they cut out the centre of 
the stem, leaving a hollow as large over as an ordinary washbowl but a 
good deal deeper. The sap, which was intended to nourish the flower- 
stalk, flows into this cavity, and flows so rapidly that it must be emptied 
every few hours. The leaves on one side of the plant are cut away so 
that the cavity can be reached, and then the tlachiquero, or collector, 
makes his rounds. 

" He is equipped with a gourd open at both ends ; inserting the broad 
end into the cavity, he sucks up the juice {aguamiel)^ and then deposits 
it in a pig-skin hanging over his back, or in pig-skins or earthen jars on 
the back of a donkey. 

"The aguamiel is carried to the central station of the establishment, 
where it is poured into shallow vats of pig or cow skin. There it 
ferments and becomes pulque, a vile-smelling liquid which is said to 
taste like stale buttermilk ; it is almost always repulsive to the stranger, 
and sometimes one who comes within smelling distance of pulque 
for the first time is made ill by it. A good maguey yields from eight 
to fifteen pints daily, and continues to do so for three or four months ; 
and a good estate of maguey plants is more, certain in the revenue 
it brings to the owner than any other enterprise. The plants thrive in 
the poorest soil where hardly anything else can live. 

" A scientific writer on this subject says : ' An analysis of aguamiel 
gives glucose, sugar, and water as the principal ingredients ; it froths when 
shaken, gives an abundant precipitate with subacetate of lead, and when 
filtered the resultant liquor is colorless. Pulque is the product of the 
fermentation of aguamiel, is an alcoholic, mucilaginoas liquid, holding in 
suspension white corpuscles, which give it its color, and has an odor and 
taste peculiar to itself. It is more or less sugary according to its strength, 
and contains about six per cent, of alcohol.' 

"Pulque is sent from the estates along the railway in barrels and pig- 
skins, and the amount consumed in the capital is about 80,000 gallons 
daily. There is a pulque train daily to the city ; we passed it at a side- 
track, and easily detected its presence by the smell of fermentation. 



222 



THE BOY TilAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




EXTRACTING AGPAMIEL. 



THE EEVENUE FROM PULQUE. 



223 



"The pulque shops are as discernible to the nose as to the eye ; they 
are numerous in all the cities and large towns, and very properly are 
under the eyes of the police. There are 820 of these shops in the city of 
Mexico. They pay a license fee to the Government as do beer and wine 
shops in European countries, and the law requires that they shall close at 
6 P.M. ; and, what strikes a 'New Yorker with astonishment, it is enforced, 




A GLASS OF AGUARDIENTE. 



too. The city derives a revenue of a thousand dollars a day from the 
pulque brought here for sale, in addition to what it receives for shop 
licenses ; the railway probably gets a thousand dollars also for the daily 
transportation, and altogether the national drink of Mexico costs a great 
deal of money. 

" Liquors called mescal and tequila are distilled from pulque, and con- 
tain a larger percentage of alcohol. Then there is a stronger liquor, called 
aguardiente (burning water), which is literally described by its name. 
Some gentlemen who liave tasted it say that it is like swallowing a torch- 
like procession or a whole collection of Fourth-of-July fireworks." 



224: 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



From pulquerias to police-courts is a verj natural step, and one Vxliicli 
is taken by a good many natives of Mexico. Frank and Fred took it, 
though not after the Mexican fashion, as their movement was voluntary, 
while that of the native is performed by invitation, or demand, of the po- 
lice. The better classes of the population know next to nothing about the 
police-courts or where they are held, and it was only after a great deal of 
inquiry that the youths learned where and when to go. The guide who 
had shown them the sights of the city claimed to be nnable to tell them, 

and when they ascertain- 
ed for themselves, he was 
somewhat unwilling to 
accompany them. It is 
barely possible that he 
had been there on his 
own account altogether 
too often to make a vol- 
untary visit agreeable. 

They found the court 
in the municipal palace, 
at one side of the Pla- 
za Mayor. Ascending a 
staircase, they were shown 
into a waiting-room, and 
beyond it there were sev- 
eral smaller" rooms. Two 
or three gentlemen were 
seated at a table in each 
of the rooms, and seemed 
to be busily engaged in 
discussing something. 
Frank asked the guide 
what they were doing. 

" One of them is a 
magistrate," was the re- 
ply; "and the others are 
the lawyers, who are laying a case before him. One is the prosecutor, 
and the other is for the defence." 

" But where are the accused and the policemen ?" 
" They're down-stairs, or perhaps they haven't got to the palace yet. 
They don't come into these rooms at all. The magistrate hears the case 




'not caught yet." 



NOVEL FORM OF TRIALS. 



225 



through the lawyers, and doesn't have tlie prisoner brought before him, as 
you do in your country." On further inquiry the youths learned that the 
magistrates hear the cases in this way, and decide whether the complaint 
shall be dismissed, the prisoner let off with a fine, or sent to the Belem 
prison, at the edge of the city. 

Some of the prisoners were, as the guide said, "down-stairs;" but the 




A MAGISTRATE. 



greater number were in a building separate from the palace, and situated 
on a narrow street close by. There is a court in the prison building, in 
which the magistrates hear cases in the same way as at the municipal pal- 
ace, without seeing the prisoner ; they hear the testimony for and against 
him, and decide accordingly. 

At the Belem prison they found another court, where cases were more 
carefully considered ; but they learned from a gentleman, with whom they 
afterwards talked on the subject, that the Mexican courts are overcrowded 
25 



226 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



with work, and prisoners often liave to wait weeks or months, and even 
years, before tlieir cases can be heard. A prisoner against whom a serious 
accusation has been made can never learn wlien it will be called to trial; 

his friends are not informed ; and 

Mpjijijlffpipiyi-^^^^^^^ ,,,.,_,,„.-„,.., ,,, _.„,-,„,^^ the only thing they can do is to 

I watch and wait day after day, or 

possibly pay heavily to somebody 
for his intlnence with the author- 
ities. Matters are better now 
than previous to the Laws of the 
Reform, but they are still far from 
what they should be. 

" We judged," said Fred, 
" that the Belem prison was 
greatly overcrowded, as the court- 
yard was full of people, and so 
were the corridors that overlooked 
tlie yard. The prisoners sleej) on 
mats on the floor of the dormito- 
ries, which are about 170 feet 
long. One hundred men lie in a 
row on the mats along the floor 
of the dormitory, so that there 
must be very little room to walk 
around. The fare of the prison- 
ers consists of twelve ounces of 
bread daily, one pound of meat, 
and a bowl of soup. Three times 
a week they have stewed beans in 
addition to the other food. 

" A prisoner whose sentence 
exceeds one month is compelled 
to work, but he is paid for his 
labor ; one-half his wages go to 
his family if he has any, and the 
rest is saved up by the prison 
authorities until the man is dis- 
charged, w^hen the money is given 
to him. This seems to me an excellent system, and it should be adojDted 
in our own country. In that case an ex-convict would have something to 




AN OLD OFFENDER. 



STORY OF AN ADROIT THIEF. 227 

Jive Tipon for a while, instead of being, as is too often the case, driven into 
crime to save himself from starvation. 

" To show the character of Mexican offences, I will quote from the 
records of the prison for one month. The whole number of prisoners was 
1278, and thej were charged with crimes as follows : 

"Thefts, 198; fighting, 109; stabbing, serious, 518; stabbing, shght, 
313 ; wounding with sticks or clubs, 140. 

" Observe that two-thirds of the number were in prison for the use of 
the knife, and you get an idea of the propensities of the lower classes of 
the population. 

""We have already mentioned the adroitness of Mexican thieves, and 
we heard several stories while visiting the prison that confirm what we 
have heard. There's a saying here that if you drop a coin it will be 
caught before it reaches the ground. They told us a story about the Chief 
Magistrate of Mexico City which we were assured was entirely true ; it 
sounds like a ' chestnut,' but is good enough to be repeated. Here it is : 

"The magistrate was one day on the street when he remarked to a 
friend that he had left his watch hanging over the head of his bed at 
home. In less than an hour a thief was at the door with a fat turkey ; he 
paid that it was sent by the magistrate, who wished his wife to send him 
his watch, which he had left at the head of his bed. 

" She sent the watch, and when his Honor came home that night he 
learned of the trick that had been played. He consoled himself with the 
reflection that he had a fat turkey for the next Sunday's dinner, and would 
not be obliged to buy anything for that important meal. 

" But the next day an accomplice of the watch-stealer called and said 
the magistrate had sent him to get the turkey, which they desired to pro- 
duce in court. The man who stole the w^atch had just been arrested, and 
the turkey was needed to secure his conviction, as it was one of the ' prop- 
erties ' in the case. Of course it was promptly sent. 

" So the good man lost both his watch and his turkey, and never heard 
of either of them again." 

There is a short road to justice called ley de fuga, M^hich is sometimes 
travelled in Mexico ; it may be translated into " running the gantlet." 
By Mexican law an officer has the right to shoot a prisoner trying to es- 
cape. Sometimes, when bandits or murderers are captured, they are allowed 
to try to escape, and in their effort to secure their freedom they take the 
chances of being killed. Recently this disposition was made of seven ban- 
dits who murdered a German named Miiller in the State of Durango, and 
then robbed his house, compelling Mrs. Miiller to show where the valu- 



228 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



ables were kept. They were captured while seated at table in Miiller's 
house after completing the robbery, a party of soldiers happening to arrive 
there most opportunely. As their conviction and execution were certain, 
they accepted the offer of the officers to permit them to try the ley de 
fuga, but not one of them succeeded in escaping. 




SCENE OF THE CAPTURE. 



DRIVE TO CHAPULTEPEC. 



229 



CHAPTER XY. 

THE PASEO DE LA REFORMA. — BRIGANDAGE NEAR THE CITY. — STATUE OF 
CHARLES IV. OF SPAIN.— STATUE OF COLUMBUS.— A RELIC OF MAXIMILIAN.— 
AQUEDUCTS FROM CHAPULTEPEC— MONTEZUMA'S TREE.— CHAPULTEPEC ; ITS 
HEIGHT AND EXTENT.— MONTEZUMA'S BATH.— THE PALACE.— "THE FEAST OF 
BELSHAZZAR."— NATIONAL MILITARY COLLEGE.— MOLINO DEL REY.— GENERAL 
SCOTT'S ADVANCE UPON MEXICO.— CAPTURE OF VERA CRUZ.— BATTLE OF CERRO 
GORDO.— ENTERING THE VALLEY.— CONTRERAS AND CHURUBUSCO.— FALL OF 
CHAPULTEPEC— GENERAL SCOTT'S ENTRANCE INTO THE CITY.— TREATY OF 
PEACE.— GENERAL GRANT ON THE MEXICAN WAR. 

ONE of the most attractive drives in the neigliborhood of Mexico is 
along the Paseo de la Reforma, the avenue leading to Chapultepec. 
In point of fact, it is generally the first drive taken by a visitor, and lie 




A CORNER OP CHAPULTEPEC. 



230 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



is pretty certain to be favorably impressed with it. Cliapultepec was a 
royal residence before the Conquest; during the Spanish rule it was the 
home of tlie viceroys, and since that time the President of the republic 
has generally lived there wlien he could live at all in the citj^ or its vicin- 
ity. Maximilian selected it for the location of the Imperial Palace, and 
enlarged the then existing buildings ; the avenue leading to it owes its 
origin to his ambition, and is a monument of his taste for the beautiful. 




MONTEZUMA S TREE. 



Whether the ride to Chapultepec is taken by the tram-way or in a car- 
riage, the stranger will find it full of interest, and he would do well to try 
both means of making the visit. If he is an equestrian he will hire a sad- 
dle-horse, and make the excursion on horseback between seven and nine 
o'clock in the morning, when it is the fashion to appear thus on the Paseo. 
Doctor Bronson and his young friends followed the prevailing custom, and 
through the aid of the manager of the hotel were satisfactorily provided 
with steeds. But they were very modestly mounted in comparison with 
some of the Mexican equestrians, whose saddles and saddle-cloths were 
elaborately ornamented and said to have cost all the way from one to two 



ENTERPRISE OF BRIGANDS. 



231 



thousand dollars each. Some of the horsemen were armed with sabres 
and revolvers — a souvenir of a custom which is no longer necessary, but 
was emphatically so not many years ago. The road to Cbapultepec, and 
indeed the roads anywhere in the suburbs, were infested with brigands, 
who used to rise up from unexpected spots as though at the hand of a 
magician, and perform their work in a very expeditious manner. 

The enterprising brigands were not content with robbing people on 
horseback or in carriages, but occasionally devoted their energies to kid- 
napping residents and holding them for ransom. As an illustration of 
their performances Frank made note of the following story : 

" One evening while a gentleman was at dinner with his family, in the 
suburb of Tacuba, a party of brigands appeared and commanded silence on 




STATUE OF COLUMBUS ON THE PASEO DE LA REFORMA. 



the part of all under pain of death. They harmed no one, and did not rob 
the house, but they hurried the gentleman into a carriage, and drove away 
with him. It was naturally supposed that he had been taken to a place of 
concealment among the foot-hills of the mountains that encircle the valley ; 
but it turned out that his captors drove directly to the city and secreted 



232 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

their victim in the cellar of a house. There he was kept for several days, 
until the police were so closely on the track of the kidnappers that they 
fled and left him to make his escape. Subsequently they were captured 
and executed ; but the circumstance was not at all a pleasant one for sub- 
urban residents to contemplate." 

Fred observed that the Paseo de la Reforma begins at the equestrian 
statue of Charles IV., very nearly a mile from the Plaza Mayor. It may 
also be said to begin at the Alameda, a beautiful garden of poplar and 
other trees, and occupying a historic site. The Alameda includes the an- 
cient Indian market-place and the Plaza del Quemadero, w^here the vic- 
tims of the Inquisition were burned to death on a stone platform which 
was long since removed. Successive viceroys improved it, and within the 
last few decades it has been planted with flowers and otherwise beautified, 
so that it is now a very attractive spot. 

The statue of Charles TV. is a fine work of art, and notable as the first 
bronze casting of any magnitude on this side of the Atlantic ; Humboldt 
pronounced it second only to the statue of Marcus Aurelius, and it has 
received the unstinted praise of many critics who have seen it. It was 
cast in 1802, and placed upon its pedestal in the following year. During 
the War for Independence it was, in 1822, covered with a large globe of 
boards painted blue, and in this condition it remained for two years, when 
it was taken down and placed in the court-yard of the University. In 
1852, when the hostility to the Spaniards had somewhat abated, the statue 
was restored to its pedestal, and has peacefully rested there ever since. 
The casting is in a single piece, and weighs thirty tons, and the height of 
horse and rider is only a few inches less than sixteen feet. 

From the foot of the statue to the base of Chapultepec is a distance of 
3Y50 yards ; the Paseo de la Peforma runs straight as a sunbeam Along 
this measured length, and it has a width, including the sidewalks, of fifty- 
six yards. At regular distances there are glo?'ietas, circular spaces like the 
Bond-Point of the Champs-Elysees, in Paris, which are intended for stat- 
ues of men eminent in the history of Mexico ; one of them is already oc- 
cupied with a statue of Columbus, who is represented drawing away the 
veil that hides the ]S"ew World. At the corners of the pedestal are four 
life-size figures in bronze, and Frank and Fred were pleased to observe 
that one of them represented the good missionary Las Casas, who labored 
earnestly for the protection of the Indians. A statue of Guatemozin, the 
last of the Aztec kings, is destined for the next space, but had not been 
erected at the time of the visit of our friends ; the third space was in- 
tended for a statue of Cortez, and the fourth for one of Juarez. The oc- 



A RIDE ON THE PASEO. 



233 



cupants of the 
other glorietas 
had not been 
named, but 
they will be 
men famous in 
the history of 
Mexico. From 
present indica 
tions Maximil- 
ian is not like- 
ly to be chosen 
as one of the 
heroes to be 
preserved in 
bronze. The 
glorietas are 
400 feet in di- 
ameter, and sur- 
rounded with stone benches 
for the accommodation of pe- 
destrian visitors. 

The Paseo is lined with 
shade-trees, so that it affords 
pleasant walks ; the centre of 
the road-way is reserved for 

people on horseback, while the carriages move along the sides. On pleas- 
ant afternoons the vehicles are so numerous that the police have sufficient 
occupation to keep them in proper line, and the turnout is a fine one in 
every way. Frank and Fred compared the display one afternoon with 
that of London, Paris, and New York, under similar circumstances, and 
after careful consideration they agreed that the Mexican pageant was more 
attractive than any one of the rest. 

" The ground is level, the road finely macadamized, and the way per- 
fectly straight ; the horses and carriages are the best that can be pro- 
cured ; the equestrians are splendidly mounted, and their apparel and 
equipments are picturesque ; the ladies are handsomely attired, and many 
of them have pretty faces; the panorama of hills and mountains loses 
none of its grandeur, and altogether we are in love with the Paseo de la 
Keforma." 




SAN COSMK AQUEDUCT. 



234 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



So wrote Frank, and his cousin gave his hearty indorsement of the 
opinion thus presented. 

"Don't forget," said Fred, "to make mention of the aqueducts that 
supply the city with water, as they are in sight from tliis drive. One 
comes from back among the hills near the old convent of El Desierto, and 
the other leads from a great spring at the foot of Cliapnltepec. The lat- 
ter aqueduct gave shelter to our soldiers during their attack on the gates 




montezdma's bath. 



of the city after the storming of the castle ; from one pillar to another of 
the aqueduct the}^ dodged the fire of the Mexican artillery and infantry, 
and so gained the front of the gate-way." 

"Fll not forget that," replied Frank, "nor the old cypresses under 
which Montezuma is said to have sat and walked ; but before we get to 
them we'll mention that an American company proposes to make an ex- 
tension of the city of Mexico by building a suburb on the level tract of 
land through which the Paseo runs. This was one of the dreams of Max- 
imilian, but he had no time or opportunity to put it into practical shape. 
His idea has been taken up by the peaceful invaders from the North, and 



ATTRACTIONS OF CHAPULTEPEC. 



235 



if it is carried out as tliej propose, it will not be many j'ears before the 
land is materially transformed. Artesian wells have been sunk in this 
level space and have found an abundance of water, and the projectors of 
the suburb say they will have their own supply without depending upon 
either of the aqueducts." 

" Chapultepec is a delightful spot," wrote Fi^ed, " whether considered 
as a public resort, a royal or Presidential residence, or for the panoramic 
view presented to the visitor as he looks from its top. It is an isolated 
rock, or hill, rising about 200 feet, and with a length of 1000 or 1200 feet, 




CHAPULTEPEC AND ITS GARDENS. 



and the top is crowned with the buildings, which have seen many changes 
among their occupants as well as in themselves. The sides are steep in 
some places, but gradual in others, the steep parts predominating. All 
around the base are cypress-trees, whose age is unknown ; but they are cer- 
tainly very old ; and their venerable appearance is increased by the moss 
that depends from their limbs. 

" The tree of the greatest interest to us was that which bears the name 
of Montezuma. If tradition is correct, the Emperor sat beneath its shade ; 
and it was possibly while resting here that he received the news of the 



236 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




EL SALTO DEL AGUA. 



approach of those strange white men who had landed upon the coast, and 
rode upon animals the like of which were never before known in America. 
It is a wonderful tree 170 feet high, and fortj-six in circumference. Like 
the other great trees of Chapultepec, it is a cypress ; and like the others, 
too, it is heavily draped with moss, as though in mourning for the aborig- 
inal ruler, whose kingdom was torn away by the invader. 

" From the tree of Montezuma we went to his bath, which is not far 
away, and is the famous spring that fills the aqueduct already mentioned. 
The water is cool and clear, and supplied the ancient Tenochtitlan, just as 
in later days it was made to supply the Spanish city which rose on the 
site of the Aztec one. The aqueduct through which the water flows is ex- 
actly on the line of that of the Aztecs. The Spanish aqueduct was begun 
in 1677, and has 904 arches from its starting-point at Chapultepec to its 
terminus in the Salto del Agua, or Water-fall, in the city. The water of 
Chapultepec is called agua delgada, or thin water ; while that supplied 
by the San Cosme aqueduct is agua gojxla, or thick water. From time 
immemorial the spring has been flowing, and it is supposed to be fed by 
underground channels from the mountains. 

" After the tree and the baths we visited the palace, or such part of it 



"THE HILL OF THE GRASSHOPPEE." 



237 



as was open to the public. There is not mnch worth seeing inside the 
building, the most interesting feature about it being the view from the 
roof. All the Yalley of Mexico, with its girdle of mountains, was before 
us ; it was like the view from the cathedral tower, with the difference that 
the city formed a part of the horizontal view in one direction, while from 
the tower it lay beneath and around our feet ; and the same view that in- 
cluded the city embraced also the snowy peaks of Popocatepetl and the 
' White Woman,' which lay a little to the right of the cluster of domes and 
roofs standing between us and the silvery sheet of Tezcoco. In the oppo- 
site direction was Tacuba, the spot where Cortez thought of rebuilding 
the city which was to rise in place of the Tenochtitlan he had destroyed. 
It is to be regretted that he did not do so, as the site is better adapted to a 
city ; it admits of good drainage, 
which the present one does not, 
and would undoubtedly be health- 
ier. 

" The present palace stands on 
the site of the one occupied by 
Montezuma. Chapultepec was 
called the 'Hill of the Grasshop- 
per ' by the Aztecs, and in their 
maps of the valley the hill is rep- 
resented with a grasshopper as 
large as itself perched on the top. 
We are wondering whether they 
really had grasshoppers of that 
size. What a famine they would 
create if they were as numerous 
as they are to-day in some parts 
of the West 1 

" What a magnificent place this 
must have been in the time of 
Montezuma, according to the de- 
scription in Prescott's History ! Here was an aviary that alone re- 
quired 300 attendants, and there was a menagerie of corresponding ex- 
tent. Then the King had granaries of immense extent, to guard against 
suffering in case of famine ; and there were armories with weapons 
sufficient for a military force of thousands. The halls of the palace were 
spacious, and the royal dining-table was supplied with delicacies of all 
kinds from every part of the dominions. Fresh fish were provided daily 




AN AZTEC RELIC. 



238 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

by a line of couriers in the same way that they were supplied to the 
Khan of Tartary in the days of Marco Polo, and also to the royal table of 
Japan. According to the accounts,, the runners made the joimiey from 
the coast to the city in very nearly the same time that it is now made by 
the railway. 

"We were shown through the palace, which has large halls and galler- 
ies, and is surrounded by terraces paved with marble and affording fine 
views of the valley and mountains. Some of the halls and galleries are 
elaborately ornatraented, while others are quite plain ; a portion of the dec- 
orations ordered by Maximilian still remain, and others have been covered 
or partly obliterated. The most interesting hall was the grand saloon, where 
banquets are occasionally given. It is memorable for liaving been the 
scene of Maximilian's 'Feast of Belshazzar,' as the Mexicans call it — his 
grand banquet on his return from Orizaba, just before he started for Que- 
retaro,for capture, and for execution. Many of the porcelain dishes marked 
with the imperial cipher were broken at this banquet, and are kept as sou- 
venirs by those who secured them. A friend of ours in ]^ew York has 
one of them ; it is part of a saucer, and was given to him by a gentleman 
who was in Mexico shortly after the fall of the Empire. 

" The national military college is at Chapultepec, and adjoins the 
palace building. We were told that it is conducted on a plan similar to 
that of our military academy at West Point, and contained between three 
and four hundred students. There was a military school here at the time 
of our war with Mexico. The cadets enlisted for the defence of Chapul- 
tepec, fought splendidly, and many of them were killed in the battle. A 
few years ago a monument commemorating their gallantry was erected in 
the garden on the side of the hill, and it should be visited in honor of the 
brave youths who fell here. 

" And this brings us to the incidents of the capture of Chapultepec. 

" ' Do you see that large building back of the grove V said our guide, 
pointing his finger in an easterly direction. 

"We followed the direction with our eyes, and indicated that we 
saw it. 

" ' Well,' said he, 'that is Molino del.Eey, the King's Mill, and there's 
where some of the hard fighting took place. Just beyond it is the Casa 
Mata, and over there, and there, are the fields of Contreras and Churu- 
busco. From this point you can take in the whole range of General 
Scott's battles in the valley that resulted in the fall of the city of Mexico.' 

"We studied the situations, and since then we've read up the history 
of, the battles, and will try to tell you something of them." 



THE VALLEY BEFORE THE RAILWAY CAME. 



239 







240 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



Frank and Fred kept their promise, and wrote an account which we 
are permitted to give in their words : 

" It will be remembered that before the battle of Buena Vista a part 
of General Taylor's army was sent to join General Scott in his advance 
npon the capital of the republic. General Scott proceeded to besiege Vera 
Cruz and the Castle of San Juan de ITlloa, which protects it. The fortress 
is a strong one, and the Mexicans were so confident of the abilities of Yera 
Cruz to hold out against any force the Americans could send against it 




VIEW OF THE FORT OP SAN JUAN DE ULLOA FROM VERA CRUZ. 



that the}^ left a garrison of only 5000 men, did not provision the city 
against a siege, and neglected to send away the women and children. The 
Americans besieged the city on the land side, the whole army landing 
without accident or opposition. The siege began on the 9th of March, 
1S47, and on the 26th of the same month the city and castle surrendered. 

" Then began the march towards the capital as soon as the provision 
trains could be made ready. The Mexicans made no opposition until the 
Americans reached the foot of the mountains, where the battle of Cerro 



DEFEAT OF THE MEXICANS. 



241 



X 



*> 












' ^ /km 



'f'(l''* /'^ 







s ^^;''^^ ^ff^-^' ^ 








BATTLE OF CERRO GORDO. 



Gordo was fought on tlie 18tli of April, the Mexicans being commanded 
by General Santa Anna, and the Americans by General Twiggs. The 
Mexicans were defeated with a loss of 1000 killed and wounded and 3000 
prisoners, including five generals and many other oflScers. General Santa 
Anna fled from the battle-field on a baggage mule, and the Mexicans were 
very much demoralized. 

"Perote and Puebla were occupied soon after the victory of Cerro 
16 



242 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

Gordo, and then the army halted in its advance to wait for reinforcements 
which were on their way from the United- States. It was not until the 
beginning of August that General Scott was ready to move towards the 
capital, and when he gave the order it was with only 10,738 men to follow 
him. Colonel Childs, with 1400 men, was left at Puebla, which was. a very 
important point on the road by which supplies were to be forwarded. 




GENERAL SANTA ANNA. 



" Three days the army struggled up the eastern slope of the mountains 
that surround the valley. When they looked down on the beautiful valley, 
with its lakes glistening in the sun, the towers of the city rising in the 
centre of the level expanse, the black fields of lava, the hills rising here 
and there, the green expanse of cultivated land, and the causeways covered 
with people, the soldiers gave a loud cheer, and in spite of the fatigue of 
.the ascent were ready to dash forward to battle. 

" To oppose them General Santa Anna had assembled an army of three 
times their number, and erected forts to guard every approach to the city. 
After carefully surveying the ground. General Scott decided to advance to 
the south of the lakes. If he had continued on by the National Road,' 
which leads from Mexico to Yera Cruz, he would have encountered the 
fortress of El Pefion, on which fifty-one guns had been mounted. The 



24:4 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




STORMING OF MOLINO DEL KEY. 



engineers said lie would lose one-tliird his army in capturing the fort, and 
hence his decision to go to the south of the lakes. 

" General Worth's division advanced to San Augustin, nine miles from 
the city, where there is a large iield of lava known as the Pedregal, which 
artillery or cavalry could not cross. The Mexicans had intrenched camps 
at Contreras and also at San Antonio, and General Scott decided to attack 



ADVANCE OF THE AMERICANS. 



245 



both these points at once. Generals Twiggs and Pillow were to advance 
upon Contreras while General Worth moved towards San Antonio. 

"During the night of the 19th of August it rained, and the men 
camped without fires. Early in the morning of the 20th the order to 
march was given. The Mexicans were taken a good deal by surprise. 
Contreras was won by a sharp fight that did not last long, and the invaders 
pushed on to San Angel, which was evacuated as they approached. Some 




GENERAL SCOTT's ENTRANCE INTO MEXICO. 



246 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

of the cannon taken by the Americans were those which were lost at 
Buena Vista, and the men who lost them were the very ones who had the 
good-fortune to make the capture. 

" San Antonio was abandoned before the Americans reached it, but a 
stand was made at Churubusco, farther on ; this was attacked in front and 
rear at the same time. Santa Anna considered it the key of the Mexi- 
can position, and the place was defended by 30,000 men. They made a 
good defence, and at one time it looked as though the assailants would be 
repulsed. Some of the most gallant fighting of the day was performed 
by a South Carolina regiment ('The Palmettos') in a charge upon a 
Mexican force largely their superior in numbers and backed by a battery 
of artillery. 

" Churubusco and Contreras had fallen, and it would have been easy 
for the Americans to advance and take possession of the city before the 
Mexicans had recovered from their panic. Under injudicious advice. Gen- 
eral Scott offered an armistice, to enable negotiations for peace to be 
made ; it was promptly accepted and lasted a fortnight, but resulted in 
nothing. When Santa Anna felt that he had repaired his damages, he 
sent an insulting message to General Scott, and hostilities were resumed. 

" Very early on the morning of September 8tli the advance began, the 
troops moving in the direction of the Casa Mata and the Molino del Rey. 
The Molino was attacked by the artillery and afterwards by the infantry. 
At one time the Americans recoiled under the shower of bullets and their 
lieavy loss in men and officers, but it was only for a moment. The Molino 
was carried, the Mexican cavalry behind it was put to flight, and the road 

was clear to Chapultepec, the home of 
the Montezumas and the viceroys. For 
four days the army rested, and on the 
12th the order to advance was given. 

" The cannonade against Chapultepec 
began at daybreak on the morning of the 
13th, and at eight o'clock General Quit- 
CAPTURED AT CHAPULTEPEC. ^^u advauccd doug tho Tacuba road, and 

General Pillow from the Molino del Key. 
The Mexicans fought stubbornly, but the Americans pressed on, and while 
the garrison was occupied in one direction an attack was made in another, 
and the position was taken. When the Mexicans fell back to the city, 
General Scott ordered the pursuit to be continued on both the roads lead- 
ing from Chapultepec to the city gates of Belem and San Cosme. Away 
went the pursuers ; and here, as stated elsewhere, they found great advan- 




THE END OF THE WAR. 



247 



tage from the aqueducts. Springing from one archway to another, they 
managed to dodge the Mexican bullets and get close to the gates. There 
they adopted the plan of boring through the houses, as they had done at 
Monterey, and in this manner by sunset they were practically, though 
not literally, in possession. 

"This was the end of the fighting. At midnight a party of Mexican 
oflScers came out with a flag of truce and proposed the suri-ender of the 
city, and at the same time the remnant of the Mexican army marched out 
of the northern gate and fled to Guadalupe Hidalgo. On the morning of 
September 14:th General Scott entered the city, and, surrounded by his 
staff and principal oflicers, rode in triumph to the Grand Plaza througli 
the crowd of men that thronged the streets and scowled as they clutched 
their knives and muttered threats against ''Los Yang-ueis P He was fol- 
lowed by six thousand men of his army ; their uniforms were ragged 
and soiled with mud, but their weapons were in ready condition for serv- 
ice, which happily was no longer needed. 

" ^Negotiations for peace were begun immediately, and on February 
2, 1848, the treaty was signed at Guadalupe Hidalgo. It was ratified in 
the following May, and as soon as it could be done conveniently, Mexico 
was evacuated by the American troops, and the two nations became 
friends again. And we shall all hope that the friendship will never be 
broken. 

" Commenting on the war with Mexico, General Grant said : ' For 
myself, I was bitterly opposed to the measure [the annexation of Texas], 
and to this day regard the war which resulted as one of the most un- 
just ever waged by a stronger upon a weaker nation. It was an instance 
of a republic following the bad examjjle of European monarchies, in not 
considering justice in their desire to acquire additional territory.' " 



r "^ H 




A SCENE OP PEACE. 



248 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



CITAPTEE XYI. 

THE NOCHE TRISTE TREE.— A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE CONQUEST OF MEXICO.— 
DEPARTURE OF CORTEZ FROM CUBA.— HE ' LANDS IN YUCATAN.— FOUNDING 
THE CITY OF VERA CRUZ.— DEFEATING THE TLASCALANS.— ENTRANCE TO 
TENOCHTITLAN.— RECEPTION BY MONTEZUMA.— RETURN TO THE COAST.— EX- 
PULSION OF THE SPANIARDS.— BESIEGING THE CITY WITH THE AID OF THE 
TLASCALANS.— CAPTURE OF THE CITY, AND DEATH OF GUATEMOZIN.— BEGIN- 
NING OF THE RULE OF THE VICEROYS.— THE CHURCH OF GUADALUPE.— STORY 
OF THE MIRACULOUS APPARITION.— RELIGIOUS AND POLITICAL HOLIDAY.— 
PILGRIMAGE TO G\JM)KU5V'E..—PENITENTES; THEIR SELF-IXFLICTED TORT- 
URES. 

THE tree of Montezuma and the traditions connected witli it called 
the attention of the youths to another famous tree of Mexico. It 
was the Arbol de la Noohe Triste,ov tree of the mournful night. 




THK NOCHE TRISTE TREE, 



COETEZ AND HIS EXPEDITION. 



249 



When it was mentioned to Doctor Bronson the latter said : 

"Before we go there I wish yon to inform yourselves about the tree, 
so that we can talk intelligently concerning its historical associations." 

Frank and Fred promised to comply with his request; and in their 
case a promise was equivalent to its performance. 

A day was set for the excursion to Popotlan, where the tree stands. 
On the morning of that day Frank said they were ready with their story ; 
it was presented to the Doctor at the breakfast-table, and pronounced 
satisfactory. Here it is as it was read by Fred : 

"Those who have studied history carefully know that Cortez sailed 
from Cuba to make the conquest of Mexico. He had a fleet of eleven 




DEPARTURE OF CORTEZ FROM CUBA. 



vessels ; the largest of them was of one hundred tons, three were of 
seventy tons each, and the rest were open barks. His whole force con- 
sisted of one hundred and ten seamen, five hundred and fifty-three sol- 
diers, two hundred Indians, and a few Indian women for servants. His 
regular soldiers consisted of sixteen horsemen, thirty musketeers, and 
thirty-two cross-bowmen; all the rest of the soldiers were armed with 
swords and spears. In addition to these he had fourteen pieces of artil- 
lery, with an abundance of ammunition ; and he had sixteen horses, which 
were the first ever seen in America. This was the force with which he 



250 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

started for the conquest of a people numbering millions, and ruled by a 
king, with a large army equipped with spears and bows and arrows, and 
protected by coats of mail of thick wadding. 

"He landed first on Cozumel Island, n«ar the coast of Yucatan, where 
he proceeded to convert the natives to Christianity. He did it in a very 



THE FIRST MASS IN THE TEMPLES OF YUCATAN. 



summary way : by calling on the natives to destroy their idols and em- 
brace the new religion. When they declined to do so, he set his soldiers 
to breaking and overturning the idols and throwing them out of the tem- 
ples. Then he erected an altar, reared a cross and an image of the Vir- 
gin, and ordered one of the priests who accompanied him to celebrate 
mass, which was done in the presence of his kneeling followers. 

" From Yucatan he sailed for the coast of Mexico, which he reached 
at the mouth of the Tabasco River. Here he landed, and after a fight 
with the Indians, which was won chiefly by the terror inspired by his 
horses and the sound of the guns, which the natives took for thunder, he 
occupied Tabasco. Shortly afterwards he had another battle with a force 
which his historians estimated at 40,000. This army he defeated, and he 
celebrated mass on the battle-field in thanks for his triumph over the 
heathen. 

" ' Then,' writes Diaz, ' after dressing our wounds with the fat of the 



MAKING ALLIES. 



251 



Indians whom we found dead, and having placed good guards round our 
post, we ate our supper and went to our repose.' 

"Peace was arranged with the Indians on condition that they should 
submit to the authority of Cortez, and accept the religion he brought them. 
They had no alternative, and immediately became Christians. When this 
was accomplished he continued along the coast of Mexico, and laid the 
foundations of Yera Cruz. There he first heard of the Emperor Monte- 
zuma, and the story of his great wealth determined Cortez to make the 
conquest of Mexico." 

" That was where he burned his ships," remarked Frank, as Fred 
paused for a moment. 

" Yes^" answered Fred, " he burned his ships partly in order to make 
retreat impossible, and partly that he might increase his force with the 
110 seamen. He left a small garrison at Yera Cruz, and then advanced 




BATTLE WITH THE INDIANS. 



towards the city. Taking part with the tribes who had been annoyed by 
the tax-collectors of Montezuma, he secured their friendship. He con- 
quered the Tlascalans in four severe battles, and then induced them to 
join him in a march upon Montezuma's capital, as they were not on 
good terms with the Aztecs ; but he could not prevail upon them to re- 
nounce their religion and adopt Christianity. 



252 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




FIRST TIEW OF THE MEXICAN CAPITAL. 



"He reached Tenochtitlan, Montezuma's capital, in November, 1518, 
with 6000 Indian allies, in addition to his force of Spaniards. Ambassa- 
dors from Montezuma met him on the road, and he was welcomed with 
•great courtesy and ceremony. A palace was assigned to him, and he 
immediately fortified it. While he was laying his plans for taking pos- 
session of the country and its immense store of gold, he learned that his 
garrison at Yera Cruz had been attacked" and one of his soldiers killed ; 
and not only was the soldier killed, but his head was sent to Monte- 
zuma. 

" The death of one soldier may not be thought a very serious matter," 
Fred remarked, by way of explanation, " but it was so for Cortez. Down 
to that time the Mexicans supposed the Spaniards were supernatural be- 
ings ; they were the children of the sun, and therefore immortal, but the 
receipt of the head of the slain soldier undeceived them. 

" He at once took Montezuma prisoner, and having captured the men 
who attacked Vera Cruz, he burned them alive in the ]3ublic square in 
front of the palace. Montezuma took the oath of allegiance to the King 
of Spain, and was set at liberty after paying an enormous amount of gold 
and precious stones by way of ransom. 

"Just as Cortez thought everything was quiet he learned that the 
■Governor of Cuba had sent an army under Narvaez to deprive him of 



ALVAKADO'S LEAP. 



253 



the command of the country. As the army was much larger than his own, 
the situation was desperate ; but Cortez was equal to it. 

"He left 200 men in the city under charge of one of his officers, and 
then hastened to the coast, where he defeated and killed I^arvaez, and add- 
ed his men to his own forces. Thus the army of 900 men, with eighty 
horses and twelve pieces of artillery, that had been sent to conquer Cortez 
became really his reinforcement. He returned with them to Mexico, 
where, meantime, the people had risen against the Spaniards, killed Monte- 
zuma, and under their new emperor, Cuitlahua, driven the invaders out of 
the city. If you want a brilliant account of the evacuation of the city, 
you will find it in Prescott's History ; it is too long to be given here. 

"There is a reminiscence of the terrible retreat," continued Fred, 
" which is shown to every visitor to the city. It is the Salto de Alvarado, 
or Alvarado's Leap, in the street which bears the name of that warrior. 
They tell us that where the line of house-fronts is broken, and shut off by 
an iron railing, was formerly a canal in the ancient city of Tenochtitlan. 




THE MEETING OF COETEZ AND MONTEZPMA. 



This is said to be the exact spot where Alvarado leaped across the canal, 
and saved himself from the death which overtook so many of his com- 
rades. He commanded the rear-guard, and was one of the few who es- 
caped. Bernal Diaz says the opening was so wide, and the sides so high, 



254 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

that no man in the world could have jumped across, no matter how strong 
might be his limbs." 

" Now we are coming to the ]^oche Triste tree," remarked Frank. 

" Yes," answered Fred. " Cortez is said to have sat all night under this 
tree at the time of the evacuation, lamenting over his misfortunes and lay- 
ing plans for the future. 

" Do you think it is really so ?" Fred asked, turning to Doctor Bron- 
son, 

"The legend is a romantic one," the Doctor replied, "and I would 
not care to disturb it ; but if I read the character of Cortez correctly, he 
was not the man to sit down and mourn under any circumstances. Quite 
likely he stopped under the tree on that eventful night of July 1, 1520 ; 
but it is more probable that he was planning what to do next instead of 
wasting his time in vain lamentations. It is time to go now," said he, 
glancing at his watch, " and we'll have the rest of the story at the foot of 
the famous tree." 

Fred folded his manuscript and consigned it to his pocket, and then 
the trio, accompanied by their guide, proceeded to Popotla by the raihva}^ 
Taking a car at the west side of the Plaza Mayor, they reached Popotla in 
little more than half an hour from the time of their departure. They 
passed through Tacuba, which was anciently an important town, but is 
now a suburb of the great city, with a population of between two and 
three thousand. 

The tree is a species of cedar, called Ahuehuete by the Indians, and 
Sabino by the Spaniards. Down to a few years ago it was in fine condi- 
tion, but one night a fire was kindled against it and seriously injured its 
trunk. Several of its limbs have since died and been removed ; and to 
prevent its utter destruction by relic-hunters, the tree has been surrounded 
by an iron railing, and is carefully watched by a policeman. Visitors may 
pick up any twigs lying outside the railing, but they are forbidden to tear 
anything from the tree, however insignificant. 

After inspecting the tree, and commenting upon the fact that it was 
certainly old enough for Cortez to have sat a whole night beneath it and 
indulged in any amount of lamentation, our friends resumed the story of 
the Conquest. 

"During the retreat," continued Fred, "the rear-guard of the Spaniards 
was destroyed ; the retreat lasted for six days, and then a battle was fought, 
on the 7th of July, 1520, on the plains of Otumba. Here Cortez was vic- 
torious, but he was not strong enough to attempt to retake the city. 

" He went to Tlascala, where he assembled a large force of natives, and 



HOW CORTEZ WAS "REINFORCED." 



255 







THE BATTLE UPON THE CAUSEWAY. 



again marched upon the capital. Meantime the Mexicans prepared for 
defence, and the Emperor having died of small-pox, which the Spaniards 
introduced, the throne was taken by Guatemozin, the son-in-law of Mon- 
tezuma. Guatemozin assembled a large army and fortified the causeways, 
so that he believed the place impregnable ; but he was not equal to the 
warlike skill of the Spanish commander. 

" Cortez had again been ' reinforced ' by the Governor of Cuba ; the 
latter had sent two ships to the aid of Narvaez, of whose fate he was 
ignorant, and when these ships arrived at Yera Cruz they were seized, and 
the men of the expedition were easily induced to join Cortez. 

"Approach by land being so well guarded, Cortez decided to attack the 
city by water. Timber for thirteen brigantines was prepared on the other 
side of the mountains, and carried on the shoulders of 8000 Tlascalans to 
the bank of a small stream flowing into one of the lakes. There the boats 
were put together, and though the Mexicans made many attacks, they were 
always defeated. 

"Each boat carried a piece of artillery and twenty-five Spaniards, and 
the fleet was sufficient to wipe the war -canoes of the Mexicans out of 
existence. When all was ready the fleet moved to the attack, and at the 
same time the land forces proceeded against the city along three of the 
causeways. 



256 



THE BOY TRAVELLEKS IN MEXICO. 



" Altogether the siege of the city lasted seventy-seven days ; it ended 
on the 13th of August, 1521, and that day may be taken as the commence- 
ment of the reign of the Spaniards in Mexico. Gnateraozin attempted to 
escape in a boat, but was captured and treated as a prisoner of distinction. 




THE CAPTURE OF GUATEMOZIN. 



The Mexicans again endeavored to drive out their invaders, but Avere 
unsuccessful, and Guatemozin was put to death under circumstances of 
great cruelty. He was burned on a bed of coals by order of Cortez, along 
with several of 'his nobles and leading men. 

"And this ends our story of the conquest of Mexico," said Fred. 
"Those who think it dry reading are at liberty to skip, but if they have 
read thus far there will be no need of doino; so." 

" What became of Cortez after the Conquest ?" Doctor Bronson asked. 

"He was rewarded by the King with the appointment of Governor and 
Captain-general of Mexico, and a marqui sate with a large revenue. But 
his success aroused jealousy, as it genei'ally does, and while he was busy 
with the conquest of the outlying provinces of Mexico his property was 
seized, and his retainers were imprisoned. He returned to Spain in conse- 
quence of this, was received with distinction, and returned to Mexico for 
new enterprises, but he found himself under the orders of a viceroy, who 
had been sent to rule over him. 



UNHAPPY REFLECTIONS. 



257 



" He went back to Spain once more, where, with great difficultj, he 
obtained an audience with tlie King, and was very coldly received. He 
soon dropped out of sight, and the closing years of his* life were passed in 
utter obscurity in Seville." 

"Yery much like the closing years of the life of Columbus," Frank 
remarked. 

" Yes," added the Doctor, " and you may continue the parallel further 
among American discoverers and conquerors. Americus Yespucius, or 
Amerigo Yespucci, died in poverty ; Balboa and Sir Walter Raleigh were 
beheaded ; Pizarro was assassinated ; 
Magellan was killed in battle ; and 
De Soto never lived to know the 
value of his discovery of the Mis- 
sissippi. Hendrick Hudson was 
forced into an open boat at sea by 
a band of mutineers, and never 
heard of afterwards ; and Captain 
John Smith died in retirement af- 
ter having passed some time in a 
French prison. Ponce de Leon, 
who went to Florida to find the 
fabled fountain of youth, was mor- 
tally wounded in a fight with the 
natives of that country, and his 
followers were forced into a disas- 
trous retreat." 

Absorbed with the train of 
thought aroused by Doctor Bron- 

son's remark, the youths silently accompanied that gentleman on the re- 
turn trip to the city, Frank concluded that he would never lead an expe- 
dition for the discovery of a new world, and Fred decided that he did not 
care to make a name in history by the conquest of a country that had done 
him no harm. 

In the afternoon they went to the hill which is notable for the church 
bearing the name of " Our Lady of Guadalupe." It is about three miles 
from the city, and in a direction opposite to that of Chapultepec. The 
present road is comparatively modern, the old one having been given up 
to the line of railway from the capital to Yera Cruz, The new road and 
the old one are parallel ; the former has fourteen shrines along the way- 
side, where pilgrims to the church used to pause to say their prayers, but 
17 




PONCE DE LEON. 



258 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




THE CHURCH OP GUADALUPE. 



the new one is not so well provided. The tram-cars run at a rapid rate, 
the mules often dashing into a gallop, but coming suddenly to a halt when 
the conductor blows his horn. 

The youths inquired as to the origin of the church, which is the most 
famous of all the places of worshij) in the country, and the object of many 
a pilgrimage every year. The result of their inquiries was the following 
story : 

" The Church of Kuestra Senora de Guadalupe stands on the spot 
where the Yirgin Mary is said to have appeared to a poor shepherd, an 
Indian named Juan Diego, in 1531, ten years after the capture of the city 
of Tenochtitlan by Cortez. He lived in a mud hut near the base of the 
hill, and one day, his father being ill, he went to obtain medicine for him, 
and was stopped by the Virgin, who upbraided him for the slowness of 
the Mexicans in accepting the religion which the conquerors offered them. 
She announced that she was to be the patron saint of the Indians, and told 
him to go and tell the bishop what he had seen and heard. 

" He went to the house of Zumarraga, who was then Bishop of Mexico, 
but was turned away unbelieved and almost unheard. The Yirgin ap- 
peared to him again, and told him to gather some roses from the top of 
the rock and carry them in his blanket to the bishop. He did so, and 



STORY OF A MIRACLE. 



259 



when the blanket was opened the picture of Mary was found to be painted 
upon itj and surrounded by the imprint of the roses. The bishop was 
incredulous at first, but when he reflected that the Indian could not paint, 
and was too poor to employ 
an artist, he accepted the 
miracle, and it was soon after 
adopted by the nation. 

" It was not easy to iden- 
tify the spot, and so the 
Yirgin appeared again and 
stamped her foot upon the 
ground. Immediately there 
burst forth a spring which 
is said to possess wonderful 
healing properties, and it has 
continued to flow ever since. 
A small chapel was imme- 
diately erected, and soon af- 
terwards the foundations of 
the church were laid. Pope 
Clement YII. officially pro- 
claimed Our Lady of Gua- 
dalupe to be the patron saint 
of Mexico, and the adoration 
of the picture spread through- 
out the whole of America and 
also to Catholic Europe. 

"At one time," said Frank, 
in his account of the visit, 
"the church of Guadalupe 
was one of the richest in 
Mexico, second only to the 
great cathedral; but the great- 
er part of its treasure was 
taken by the Liberal Govern- 
ment, and coined into money, 
at the time of the confisca- 
tion of Church property. The 

golden frame of the picture of the Yirgin was carried away, but after- 
wards returned. The altar railing, of solid silver, was not disturbed. Its 




STATUETTE OF THE VIRGIN MART. 



260 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

value must be very great, as it is massive, and the metal is said to be of 
the highest standard. 

" The original painting is kept in an iron frame above the high altar, 
and is shown only on rare occasions. By paying a fee to the sacristan we 
obtained a view of it. The material on which the painting appears is of a 
Yerj coarse fabric, but the picture is distinct, and its colors seem to be 
admirably preserved. Copies of the picture are to be seen everywhere. 
Hardly a house in the country is without one of them, and they are for 
sale in all shapes and kinds to suit the most economical purse. Peddlers 
offer them to you on the streets, and no j)ious Mexican would be without 
at least one image of the patron saint of his country. 

" Pilgrimage to this place is constantly going on, but the great and 
especial day of the year is the 12th of December, the anniversary of the 
miraculous appearance. On that day thousands of pilgrims are here from 
all parts of Mexico and Central America, and at the conclusion of the cere- 
monies there is an exhibition of fireworks in front of the church. After 
this display the natives perform the mitate, one of their ancient dances, in 
one of the halls attached to the church. The high dignitaries of the church 
are present at the fireworks and also at the dance. According to what we 
learned of it, the mitate has a resemblance to some of the dances in the 
Hindoo temples of India. We are told that the priests facilitated the 
adoption of the Catholic religion by jDermitting the natives to retain some 
of their heathen customs, and the mitate is one of them. 

" In the War for Independence the picture of Our Lady of Guadalupe 
was borne on the banners of the insurgents, and their rallying cry was 
' Guadalupe.' The priest Hidalgo, who originated the insurrection, was so 
identified with the shrine and its use during the war that his name was 
incorporated with it and given to the town which surrounds the church. 
After the independence of the country was secured it was decreed that 
December 12th should be kept as a national holiday, and consequently the 
date is political as well as religious. The treaty of peace between the 
United States and Mexico -was signed here on February 2, 1848, and is 
consequently known in history as the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo." 

This is the church to which the Empei-or Maximilian walked with 
bare feet from the city, three miles away. He established a title and 
decoration of the Order of Guadalupe, and during his brief reign it was 
conferred npon distinguished and other persons who had rendered, or 
might render, services to the empire or its ruler. 

The mention of the devotional act of Maximilian in walking bare- 
footed to the church of Guadalupe reminded one of the youths of an 



TORTUEES OF THE PENITENTES. 



261 



account he had read not long before of the way in which many of the 
pilgrims to the shrine were accustomed to inflict self-torture in days gone 
by. They lashed themselves and one another with whips, gashed their 
flesh with knives, and in other ways personally injured themselves. Of 
late years the practice has fallen into disuse, but occasionally a Penitente, 
as he is called, may be seen punishing himself for some real or fancied sin. 




MAKING A PILGRIMAGE COMFORTABLY. 



Doctor Bronson told the youths that in some parts of the country a 
favorite act of the Penitentes is to walk over cactus-leaves, or to crawl 
upon them on their bare knees. A cross is set up, in the yard of a church 
and the ground in front of it is strewn with the thorny cactus. On this 
dreadful pavement the Penitentes walk to the foot of the cross, and believe 



262 



THE BOY TKAVELLEES IN MEXICO. 



that when they have accomplished the journey they have expiated all the 
sins committed by them since the last ceremony of the same kind was held. 
The Doctor said the priests had tried to abolish this practice, which was 




THE PENITENTES WALKING ON CACTUS-LEAVES. 



established by the old Franciscan missionaries about 200 years ago, but it 
has so strong a hold upon the Indians that they refuse to give it up. 

When the missionaries established the Order of Penitentes, their prin- 
cipal dogma was that no sin could be forgiven without confession and 



AN INCONVENIENT DOGMA. 



263 



expiation. The society increased in numbers, and at length became prac- 
tically independent of the Church ; it adopted several dogmas of its own, 
one of them being the converse of the original, and to the effect that no 
sin could be so great that it could not be washed away by expiation. This 
new dogma gave the priests much trouble, especially among the natives 
of ]^ew Mexico and the neighboring provinces of the republic. 




SAN FRANCISCAN MISSION. 



264 



THE BOY TEAVELLEKS IN MEXICO. 



CHAPTER XVII. 

AREA AND INHABITANTS OF MEXICO.— CHARACTER OF THE POPULATION.— IND- 
IANS, EUROPEANS, AND MESTIZOS; THEIR RESPECTIVE NUMBERS AND CHARAC- 
TERISTICS.— INCLINATIONS OF THE MIXED RACES.— TENDENCIES OF EDUCATED 
INDIANS.— PRESIDENT JUAREZ AS AN EXAMPLE.— HOW THE INDIANS LIVE.— 
HOW THE SPANIARDS TOOK POSSESSION OF THE LAND.— CREOLES AND THEIR 
ORIGIN.— THE MESTIZOS.— LEPEROS AND THEIR CHARACTER.— ADROIT THIEVES. 
—PAWNING A CHURCH ORGAN.— THE LEPEROS AND THE BRIGANDS.— CHURCH 
OF SAN DOMINGO. — SHORT HISTORY OF THE INQUISITION IN MEXICO. — THE 
A UTO-BA-FA 

O'N the day following the visit to the church of Guadalupe Doctor 
Bronson was occupied with some business matters that rendered his 
movements somewhat uncertain. Frank and Fred thought it a good 
opportunity to make some statistical notes about Mexico which they had 

been for some time contemplating, 
but had postponed in consequence 
of there being no hurry about the 
"" -- matter. The figures were at hand 
whenever they chose to use tliem, 
and so they had no anxiety on the 
subject. 

" First," said Fred, " we will see 
the extent of the country, learn how 
large the population is, and of what 
it is composed." 

" Yery well," was Frank's reply ; 
" you may put down the figures and 
other memoranda as I read them 
off." 

The youths settled down to their 
work, Fred at table Avith note-book 
and pencil, and Frank with an ar- 
ray of books before him. For an 
hour or two their heads were, as Dr. 
Holmes says, " ant-hills of units and 




A^N^ 



INDIAN OF NORTHERN MEXICO. 



POPULATION OF MEXICO. 



265 



tens," as we shall see from the following, which they have permitted us 
to copy : 

" Mexico lies between the 15th and 33d parallels of latitude, and the 
86th and llTth meridians of longitude. Its greatest length is only a trifle 
less than 2000 miles, and its greatest width 750 miles. At the Isthmus of 
Tehuantepec it narrows to 140 miles ; and this is the place where Captain 
Eads proposed to make a. railway for transporting ships from one ocean 
to the other. We'll have somethine; 
to say about this proposition in an- 
other place. 

" We cannot find that there has 
ever been an exact survey of the 
country or a careful census of the 
inhabitants. No two authorities 
agree concerning the area and pop- 
ulation ; but an average of the best 
of them shows that the country 
measures about 800,000 square 
miles, and has 10,500,000 inhabit- 
ants. It is divided into twenty- 
seven States, one Territory, and one 
federal district ; the federal district 
includes the capital city, and may be 

regarded as the equivalent of the District of Columbia in the United 
States, though it is much larger in area. 

" One-half the population consists of mestizos, or ' mixed people ;' one- 
sixth are Europeans or their Creole descendants ; and one-third and more 
are of pure Indian blood. The following figures are from the last census : 

Indians . 3,200,000 

Europeans and their descendants 1,500,000 

Mestizos — mixed races 5,800,000 




A MESTIZO WOMAN. 



Total 10,500,000 



" Senor Garcia Cubas, a Mexican gentleman who has written a statis- 
tical work about Mexico, published at the ofiice of the Minister of Public 
Works, says of the different races of people in the country : ' The differ- 
ence of dress, customs, and language shows the heterogeneous character of 
the population. . . . The habits and customs of the people that make up 
the Creole portion of the population are essentially European, and conform 
particularly to the fashions of the French, with some features borrowed 



266 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

from the Spanish. Their national language is Spanish ; French is consid- 
erably used; and English, German, and Italian are receiving increased at- 
tention. The nearest descendants of the Spanish, and those less mixed up 
with the natives of Mexico, belong by their complexion to the white race. 
The natural inclination of the mixed races to the habits and customs of 
the whites and Creoles, as well as their estrangement from those of the 
natives, is the reason that many of them figure in the most important asso- 
ciations of the country, by their learning and intelligence, including in this 
number the worthy members of the middle classes. From this powerful 
coalition the force of an energetic development naturally results, which is 
inimical to the Indian race. Many of the natives themselves contribute to 
this fatal consequence, as they have joined the body I have referred to, 
and founded new families with the habits and customs of the upper 
classes.' " 

"President Juarez may be cited as an example of the pure Indian of 
Mexico," Fred remarked, " who leaves behind him the traditions and cus- 
toms of his race, and adopts those of the enlightened classes." 

" I presume so," replied Frank, " and every Indian who has adopted 
the dress and ways of the European, and identified himself with the nine- 
teenth century habits of thought, is helping to assimilate the aboriginal 
race with the new one. In this way the population will in time become 
essentially European, but it will take hundreds of years to bring about 
such a state of things. Railways, commerce, education, and liberal ideas 
will accomplish it ; and the Mexico of the twentieth century promises to 
be a great improvement upon that of the eighteenth. There is now no 
political distinction on account of race, and the social one cannot last 
much longer." 

Having given utterance to this sage remark, Frank blushed at his au- 
dacity in hazarding a prophecy, and referred again to the books before 
him. 

"Wouldn't it be well," said Fred, "to say something about the natives, 
and compare them with the Indians of the Western States and Territories 
of our own country ?" 

" It certainly would," responded Frank, " and so here goes : 

" The Mexican Indian is not much unlike the American one in general 
appearance, as he is of a brown or olive color, and has little or no beard. 
His cheek-bones are high, and he has slender limbs and a broad chest. 
Owing to his having been so long accustomed to carrying burdens on his 
back, he is inclined to stoop, while the American Indian stands erect. The 
Mexican Indian is also liable to stoutness, while the American one is not. 



DRESS OF THE NATIVES. 



267 







INDIAN GIRL SPINNING COTTON. 



His dress is pretty much the same in all parts of the country, varied, of 
course, by the conditions of the climate. Short and wide trousers of coarse 
cotton cloth, a loose jacket of the same material, a scrape or blanket for 



268 



THE BOY TKAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



cool weather or at night, a straw hat, and a pair of sandals form his cos- 
tume. The different tribes are distinguished by the colors of the cloth- 
ing, but this distinction is slowly being effaced." 

" ^ow a few words about 
the Creoles," suggested Fred. 
"But I have not done 
with the Indians yet," re- 
plied Frank, "as this is a 
good place to say something 
about their houses. We have 
mentioned them in another 
place, but I want to add that 
in the hot country the In- 
dian dwelling is made of 
wood, thatched with palm' 
or banana leaves, while in 
the uplands it is of adobe, 
with a flat roof covered with 
clay supported by beams and 
stamped or beaten hard. A 
fire is generally kept burn- 
ing day and night, and near 
it are the cooking utensils, 
which cost altogether only a 
few dollars at most. The 
hut has no furniture except 
a few stools and some mats 
of cane or rushes, whicli 
serve as beds at night and 
seats by day. A whole fam- 
ily lives in a space which we 
should consider small for one 
person and altogether too re- 
stricted for two. 

" When the Spaniards con- 
quered the country they took 
possession of the lands and everything else ; they allowed the Indians only 
sufficient space for their villages, and a plot of ground 3600 feet square for 
agricultural purposes, which all the inhabitants of a village were to cultivate 
in common. They still have this common garden, but the majority of them 




PEDDLER OP WOODEN TRATS. 



CREOLES AND INDIANS. 



269 



abandon tlieir rights in it, and earn their living by hiring out with land- 
owners or miners. In former times a Spaniard spoke of himself as (jente 
de razon, or man of intelligence, while he designated the Indian as gente 
sin razon, a man of no understanding. The Indians accepted this distinc- 
tion, and often speak of themselves 
in this way. Of course this is not 
the case with the superior ones, who 
have adopted the European ways of 
living. 

" Now I come to the Creoles," 
said Frank, "who are either Euro- 
peans or people of European parent- 
age. They were formerly the ruling 
class of Mexico in every sense of the 
•expression, but since the Revolution 
and the Laws of the Reform their 
position is changed, as they are com- 
pelled to recognize the equality of 
the educated Indian, which in olden 
times they absolutely refused to do. 
When Juarez, who, as already stated, 
was an Indian of pure blood, became 
President it was a great shock to the 
sensibilities of many of the old aris- 
tocrats, but they survived it because 
they were compelled to do so. The 
hostility has generally died out, but 
a good deal of it lingers and will re- 
main for many generations." 

" I am reminded," said Fred, " of 
a transaction which is' attributed to 
the Pilgrim Fathers of New England 
when they landed at what is now 
Plymouth." 

"What is that?" 

" They are said to have held a meeting, and passed the following pre- 
amble and resolution : 

" ' Whereas, it has been decreed that the saints shall inherit the earth ; 

" ' It is therefore Resolved, that we are the saints.' " 

"The Spanish conquerors of Mexico evidently did not think it worth 




CHARCOAL TENDER. 



270 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




while to pass any resolutions or hold any meetings," answered Frank, with 
a laugh. " They went ahead and inherited the earth without bothering 
themselves about formalities. The Indians were considered to have no 
rights that the white men were required to respect, and were made to 
understand that it was owing to 
the great mercy and tenderness 
of the Spaniards that the natives 
were not slaughtered down to the 
last of the race. And there is lit- 
tle doubt that they would have 
been slaughtered had they not 
been needed for menial work and 
to make life easy for the new- 
comers. 

"As before stated, the Creoles 
have the manners, customs, and 
dress of Spain to a large extent, 
though they follow the fashions 
of France in several particulars. 
The account of a Mexican court- 
ship shows how the women are 
secluded, as in Spain. The men 

have the Spanish taste for gaming, bull-fights, and gallantry, and they 
have lost little of the polite forms for which Andalusia is famous. "Where 
their means permit they are princely in their hospitality, and no grandee 
of Castile could stab his intimate friend with a stiletto more gracefully 
than can the Mexican Creole in case of a misunderstanding. That the 
Creole women are pretty and possessed of most fascinating manners is the 
testimony of all wjio have seen them. 

" In regard to the mestizos," said Frank, " I will quote a few words 
from 'Mexico and the Mexicans,' and let you write" them down." 

Fred assented, whereupon Frank slowly read out the following : 

" The noblest of the Aztecs fell in battle with the Spaniards. Their 
property fell into the hands of the victors, who at the same time became 
possessed of the families of those who had fallen. The rude warriors mar- 
ried the dusky daughters, who became their equals by baptism. It was 
not considered a mesalliance to marry a noble Aztec girl. The sons of 
Montezuma, who were educated in Spain, received the title of count. The 
Indian aristocracy adopted Christianity, and became amalgamated with the 
new population. 



OF THE OLD ARISTOCRACY. 



MESTIZOS AND LEPEEOS. 



271 



"The mestizo is thus the child of a white father and an Indian 
mother. He is a magnificent horseman ; one might take him for an 
Arab as, lance in hand, he rashes past upon his light steed. In the 
warmer regions he wears, on Sundays, a carefully plaited white shirt, 
wide trousers of white or colored drilling, fastened round the hips by a 
gay girdle, brown leather gaiters, and broad felt hat, with silver cord or 
fur band around it. The mestizos include the great majority of the 
rancheros, or farmers, and the arrieros, or mule-drivers ; many of them 
are educated, and take a leading part in law, politics, and medicine, where 
they often attain high rank. They are excellent soldiers, especially on 
horseback, and it is this class of Mexicans that have given the Mexican 
cavalry its high reputation." 

" How about the leperos ?" queried Fred. " Don't they belong among 
the mestizos ?" 

"Yes," was the reply, "that is what the books I am looking at say of 
them. They come from the union of the worst of the two races, and are 
said to possess the vices of both with the good qualities of neither. They 
are the class from which the thieves and beggars of Mexico are recruited. 
One writer says, ' A lepero is a thief from infancy, and is able to steal as 
soon as he leaves his mother's arms.' The Chief of Police says that nine 
out of ten of the men and boys selling lottery 
tickets or newspapers on the streets are thieves 
and pickpockets, and their legitimate business is 
simply a cloak for the illegal one. 

"Another authority says that on the line of 
the Mexican Railway from Yera Cruz to the cap- 
ital nothing tha,t two men can 
lift is left out-of-doors after dark. 
All car-couplings must be carried 
into the stations ; and the rascals 
used to steal the spikes that held 
the rails to the ties until the com- 
pany adopted the plan of rivet- 
ing them to the rails after they 
were driven into place. 

" Brantz Meyer tells about an 
Englishman who was walking 
along one of the principal streets 
of Mexico, when he suddenly felt 
his hat rising from his head. He ^ creole residence. 




272 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




GUOUP OF MEXICAN HORSEMKN. 



looked up and saw it sailing towards the window from which the thief 
had caught it by tlie dexterous use of a hook, 

"Another story that he tells is about a Mexican who was stopped on 
the road by three others, who robbed him of his cloak. They told him to 
wait where he was and he would be able to make something by doing so ; 
out of curiosity he waited, and in a little while an accomplice of the 
thieves came and handed him a pawn ticket. He accompanied the gift 
with a graceful bow, and explained that the cloak had been pawned for 
thirty dollars. ' We wanted the money and not the cloak,' the thief 
explained, 'and as the garment is worth at least a hundred dollars, you 
can redeem it and make seventy dollars by the transaction.' 

" There was once a lepero who pretended to be converted by tlie 
preaching and teaching of a missionary, and the good man gave him 
employment as janitor of the church. One day an organ was delivered 
at the church, and the missionary appointed a time when it should be 
exhibited to his friends. The party assembled accordingly, and the mis- 



QUARRELS, AND THE RESULT. 



273 



sionarj was surprised to find that the janitor was absent. He was still 
more surprised when he found that the organ had followed the janitor's 
example and was missing. The janitor had carried it away during the 
night to a neighboring empeno, and pawned the instrument for whatever 
he could obtain on it." 

"We may add to Frank's account of this gentry that the brigands were 
of the lepero class, though very often they had leaders of a higher rank 
in life. The Government has executed a good many of them in its 
efforts to break up the system of highway robbery, and altogether the 
natural instincts of the leperos have been greatly curbed in recent years. 




A SOCIETY BELLE. 



They are almost always armed with either knife or pistol, and make 
ready use of these weapons on frequent occasions. At nearly every 
festival or assemblage of any kind, fights among leperos form , a part 
•of the proceedings. It is not customary to interfere between the com- 
batants, the by-standers forming a circle and looking calmly on until one 
of them falls. 
18 



274 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



Fred laid aside his pencil and note-book, while Frank closed the 
volumes he had consulted. Tliis done, the youths went out for a stroll, 
intending to submit the result of their labors to the Doctor when next 
they met him. 

Their walk took them to the Church of San Domingo, which was 
once a magnificent building, but has suffered greatly in its proportions 
and decorations in recent years. It was the church of the Dominican 

order of priesthood, and had a large 
convent near it. The convent, or 
more properly monastery, has been 
destroyed, and the church has lost 
some of its parts by reason of the 
extension of streets which were 
needed for the business of the city. 
Close to the church is the School 
of Medicine, which is partly sup- 
ported by Government and partly, 
by fees received from the students. 
The building was interesting to 
Frank and Fred because it was once 
the tribunal of the Inqaisition, which 
was established in Mexico in 1571, 
and supj)ressed in 1813. Immedi- 
ately after the suppression of the 
Inquisition the building was con- 
verted into a prison ; afterwards it 
was the office of the Government 
lotteries, and then a barrack for sol- 
diers. The Mexican Congress met 
here for a time ; and in 1851 the 
building was adapted to its ]3resent use as a School of Medicine. 

One day the youths accompanied Doctor Bronson in a visit to the 
school, and while he was busy with medical matters they accompanied 
their guide in looking up the few traces that remain of the Inquisition. 
Some of the cells where prisoners were confined were shown to them, and 
also the room where they were tried. After their return from the inspec- 
tion the youths tried to obtain a full history of the Inquisition, but were 
unsuccessful. Doctor Bronson told them that no satisfactory and impar- 
tial history of it had ever been written, all the works that have appeared 
on the subject being either very hostile or very friendly. 




A MEXICAN GRANDEE. 



THE INQUISITION. 



275 



"Briefly we may say," added the Doctor, "that the Inquisition wa^ 
formally established in the thirteenth century, and came to an end in the 
first part of the nineteenth ; but trials and punishment for heresy had taken 
place as early as the fourth century. The Inquisition was more powerful 
in Spain than in any other country of Europe ; and it never had any hold 
of consequence outside of Spain, Italy, and France, and the colonies of 
Spain. One historian (Llorente) says that during the whole period of the 
Spanish Inquisition — from 1483 to 1808 — 31,912 persons were burned 
alive, 17,659 were burned in 
e^gj, and 291,456 were sub- 
jected to rigorous pains and 
penalties. The accuracy of 
his statements is doubted, 
Prescott considering them 
greatly exaggerated and his 
figures most improbable ; and 
other writers share Prescott's 
opinion. 

"The decree by which 
the Inquisition was estab- 
lished in Mexico especially 
exempted the Indians from 
its operations, and thereby 
secured its popularity among 
them, as the public burning 
of Spanish and other heretics 
afforded much amusement to 
the natives, and was a sort of 
substitute for the human sac- 
rifices of the Aztecs, which 
the Conquest had abolished. 
The Mexican Inquisition was 
under the special charge of 
the Dominican order, the 
same as in Spain, and hence 
was associated with the 
Church of San Domingo. 

" There is," continued the Doctor, " a^ popular misapprehension con- 
cerning the auto-da-fe, or profession of faith. It is generally believed to 
be the burning of the condemned, whereas the auto-da-fe was simply the 




A SERMON IN THE CHURCH. 



2T6 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



public ceremony that followed the secret trial by the Inquisition. The 
members of the tribunal, and all others assembled ^vith them, made a pub- 
lic auto-da-fe^ or profession of their faith in Christianity and the doctrines 
of the Church. After this was done the list of the condemned was read, 
together with the j^unishments accorded to them, and then the victims 




CHURCH OF SAN DOMINGO. 



were handed over to the civil authorities for punishment. The trial and 
sentence were the work of the Church, but the punishment was that of the 
civil power only. 

" The first auto-da-fe in Mexico was in 1574, when ' twenty-one pesti- 
lent Lutherans' were burned, and from that time on the public burnings 
were frequent. How many people perished in these affairs is not known ; 
but it must not be understood that all the victims who suffered were burned 
alive. In most instances, even where the body of the condemned man was 
burned, he was killed by strangling ; thus in one case where fifteen per- 
sons perished, fourteen were first strangled, and only one was burned alive. 
The penalty of death by burning was visited only upon heretics and sor- 
cerers. 



SECEET TRIALS AND PUNISHMENTS. 



277 



"And here," added the Doctor, "is a photograph of four victnns of the 
Inquisition, whose skeletons were found in the wall of the building which 
was the seat of the tribunal in Mexico. Thej are supposed to have been 
built into the wall at the time of its construction, but nothing is actually 
known concerning them. 

" The trials of accused persons were always held in secret ; the unfortu- 
nates were not permitted to see their accusers, or even know their names. 
The punishments were death by fire or on the scaffold, imprisonment for 
life or shorter terms, with or without hard labor, forfeiture of property, 
civil infamy, and in mild cases public retraction and penance. Accused 
persons might be tortured to make them confess their guilt, and an accom- 
plice might be a witness against an accused individual." 

" What a horrible system !" exclaimed Frank. 

"Yes," replied the Doctor, "but you must remember that it was very 
nearly the same form of procedu.re as that of the civil tribunals of the 




TORTURE CHAMBER. 



278 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



same countries and times, and not unlike what is known in some parts of 
tlie world at the present day. And, furthermore, remember that while the 
Inquisitors of Spain and Mexico were doing the deeds which have been 
proven against them, persecution was by no means unknown in England 
and America. Perhaps at the very hour when a victim of the Inquisition 
was being put to death in Mexico, the Christian peo^^le of Salem, Massa- 
chusetts, were hanging somebody accused of being a witch, or the English 
Puritans, under Cromwell, were putting Charles I. to death !" 




PRISONERS OF THE INQUISITION. 



ASCENDING THE GREAT MOUNTAIN. 



279 



CHAPTER XYIIL 

ASCENT OF POPOCATEPETL.—" THE WHITE WOMAN."— GEOGRAPHICAL POSITION OF 
THE VOLCANO.— FIRST ASCENT BY WHITE MEN.— AMEOAMECA.— HIRING HORSES 
AND BUYING PROVISIONS.— EQUIPMENT FOR THE EXCURSION.— DANGER OF ROB- 
BERS.— PEONS AND VOLCANEROS.— FIELDS OF BARLEY AND FORESTS OF PINE. 
—AN INDIAN TRADITION.— FATE OF THE GIANT AND GIANTESS.— ICE FROM POPO- 
CATEPETL FOR THE CITY OF MEXICO.— SULPHUR FROM THE CRATER.— SLEEPING 
AT TEAM AC AS.— ARRIVAL AT LA CRUZ.— THE ASCENT ON FOOT.— DIFFICULTIES 
OF CLIMBING IN THE RAREFIED AIR.— THE PICO DEL FRAILE.— CAUGHT IN A 
CLOUD. 

IT was the most natural thing in the world that the daily view of the 
snow-covered mountains, Popocatepetl and Iztaccihuatl, roused in the 
youths a desire to ascend to the top of the former. Doctor Bronson was 
not ambitious to undertake the expedition, but he encouraged the youths 
in their desire, and arranged to accompany them as far as the foot of the 
cone, where the saddle-horses are left. Frank was appointed the historian 




A RESIDENCE IN THE FOOT-HILLS. 



280 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 





of the affair, and performed liis work 
in a mariner that secured the hearty 
commendation of the Doctor. Our 
readers may judge for themselves of 
the young man's literary abilities ; 
we have not changed a line or a 

word of his account, which was as follows : 

" Popocatepetl means ' The Mountain that Smokes,' and Iztaccihuatl is 

La M'ujer Blanca, or ' The White Woman.' The name of the great vol- 



THE VALLEY OF AJIECAMECA. 



FIKST ASCENT OF ''OLD POPO," 281 

cano is generally shortened to ' Popo ' or ' Old Popo,' and for the sake of 
saving time and space I shall follow the fashion occasionally, and not give 
the name in full. 

" The name of ' The White Woman ' comes from the resemblance of 
the top of the ridge to the body of a woman lying nj)on a bier and cov-^ 
ered with a shroud. The face is quite perfect, but the rest of the figure 
requires considerable aid from the imagination. Old Popo is not alto- 
gether a smoking mountain, as there are times when no smoke comes from 
it, though it constantly throws out fumes of sulphur ; in one sense it may 
be called an active volcano, while in another it should not be so designated. 
According to the historians, it was quite lively during the first years of the 
Conquest, but for a very long time it has been peaceful enough, and only 
at rare intervals shows any signs of a return to business activity. 

" Geographically it is forty-five miles from the city of Mexico in a 
south-southeasterly direction ; it is in latitude 19° north and longitude 98° 
30' west, and according to the measurements of Humboldt and others, it is 
17,540 feet high. The latest Mexican atlas makes it 17,884 feet ; General 
Ochoa, the owner of the crater, says it is 19,673 feet, and still another 
measurement gives the height of the summit at 21,373 feet. You may 
take your choice of these figures. 

" Popocatepetl was first ascended in 1522 by Prancisco Montano, who 
was lowered 450 feet into one of the craters by means of ropes. He did 
not succeed in reaching the summit, nor did several other explorers who 
made the attempt during the time of Cortez. 

" It used to be a much more tedious journey to the summit of Popo, as 
it was necessary to go on horseback about sixty miles from the city of 
Mexico, and the expedition required a large outlay for horses, guides, and 
escort, and consumed from ten to fifteen days. 'Now the railway is a 
great help in the matter, and we utilized it to the utmost. Before the 
railway was opened, the journey to Amecameca was made by diligence. 

" Two American gentlemen. Colonel Watson and Mr. Arms, both of 
New York, were stopping at the hotel with us, and on learning that we 
wished to visit Popocatepetl, they invited us to join them. Of course we 
accepted at once, and Colonel Watson offered to make all the arrangements 
about horses and guides. His first step was to obtain a letter of introduc- 
tion from General Ochoa, who owns the crater of the volcano and carries 
on an extensive business of mining for sulphur ; the letter was addressed 
to his agent and major-domo at Amecameca, Don Domingo Zela, and 
asked him to facilitate the movements of the party in any way in his 
power, and allow us to sleep in his rancho. at Tlamacas. 



282 



THE BOY TEAVELLEES IN MEXICO. 









" Colonel Wat- 
son went to Anie- 
cameca one morn- 
ing accompanied 
by Fred, who was 
to act as interpre- 
ter, as the colonel 
was a little rnsty 
in his Spanish. 
Doctor Bronson, 
Mr. Arms, and I 
followed the next 
day, and the colo- 
nel had every- 
izTAcciHUATL, THE WHITE WOMAN. tiling ready for us 

on our arrival. We 
went by the Morelos Kailway, starting from the station of San Lazero at 



MAKING THE START. 283 

7.30 in the morning, and reaching Amecameca in about two liours. The 
distance is fifty-eight kilometres, or thirty-six miles. 

" The town is of goodly size, and has a prosperous appearance. It was 
once the resort of robbers, who occasionally dashed out upon the roads in 
the direction of the city, and after plundering everybody who came in 
their way they retired as speedily as they came. The people of the town 
screened them whenever they were pursued by the military, and some 
very vigorous 'action was necessary before the business was broken up. 
Most of the three thousand inhabitants are Indians, and since the advent 
of the railway and the consequent increase in the number of visitors they 
show a laudable ambition to make the most that they can out of the 
strangers who come within their reach. 

" Through the aid of Don Domingo Zela, Colonel Watson had secured 
a sufiicient number of horses and mules to give everybody a good mount, 
and also for the transportation of the baggage. He had engaged some 
volcaneros, or mountaineers, men whose ordinary occupation is the trans- 
portation of sulphur from the mines in the crater.; they know every inch 
of the way, and are accustomed to all the peculiarities of the mountain. 
ISTobody should attempt to ascend Popocatepetl without a sufficient num- 
ber of volcaneros ; one to each traveller is none too many. 

" Then there were several peons, or general servants, and there were 
arrieros to look after the animals and see that none of them were lost. 
Altogether we made quite a cavalcade, and must have presented an im- 
posing appearance to the crowd that assembled to see us off. 

" It did not take long to pack our baggage on the mules ; we did not 
have a large quantity, and, moreover, it was in bags or bundles suitable 
for the pack-saddle. It included heavy blankets for keeping us w^arm at 
Tlamacas — where we w^ere to spend two nights close to the snow-line — 
heavy overcoats, canned meats and other provisions, and our travelling- 
bags containing the little odds and ends that one Avishes for his own use. 
We were told that we could get most of the things we needed at Ameca- 
meca, but it might happen that the usual supply-shop would be ' out ' just 
then, and we had better make sure by procuring in the city the things that 
we wanted. Then we had goggles to protect our eyes from the glare of 
the sun on the snow, thick mittens and mufflers to keep out the cold from 
hands and faces, and heavy woollen stockings to put over our boots to pre- 
vent slipping on the ice, 

" The boots that we wore were not our ordinary ones, but heavy af- 
fairs specially made for the purpose, -and having sharp nails in the soles 
to give us a good grip on the ice. We did not put them on until 



284 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



reaching the snow-line, and when we came back we gave them to the vol- 
caneros as souvenirs of our visit. If the fellows were sharp they probably 
sold the boots at a good price to the first party of tourists who happened 
along without this sort of an equipment. 

" There was some difficulty in getting away, as Colonel "Watson's horse 
insisted upon having a private dance just to show ofE his ability, and as 




ALONG THE TRAIL. 



the dance took place in the midst of the other horses, it made a disturb- 
ance until we could get out of the way. The example became contagious, 
and very soon some of the other horses joined in the dance, but we man- 
aged to quiet them all down without accident. 

" We had been warned in the city that robbers occasionally interfered 
with visitors between Amecameca and Tlamacas, and if we could procure 
an escort it would be a wise precaution, and possibly save us from plunder 
or a fight. Colonel Watson brought a letter to the commander of the 
Murales, or Rural Guards, at Amecameca, and that gentleman kindly gave 
us an escort of four men to accompany us to Tlamacas and back, waiting 
there while we were making the ascent of the mountain. Quite possibly 



MUKDEK AT LOW PKICE. 



285 



these fellows had been brigands, and may have carried on business in this 
very place, but this was no affair of ours. They served us faithfully, and 
we were not interfered with in any way. 

" That robberies have been committed, and murder too, was evident 
from the great number of crosses along the road. There is said to have 
been a time when a man known to have five dollars, or even one dollar, in 
his pocket was not safe along this route. ' There were men who were ready 
to commit murder for a trifling amount ; anybody who wanted to be rid 
of the presence of another had only to mention it to one of this gentry, 
and accompany the mention w^ith a suggestion that it would be w^orth five 
or ten dollars to have the obnoxious individual disappear. In a day or 




DWARF PINES AT A HIGH ELEVATION. 



two he w^ould be found dead by the way-side ; a slight stir would be made 
by the police, but if no reward was offered for the murderer the affair was 



soon forgotten. 



" At any rate, that is what the chief volcanero, who acted as our guide, 
told us, when we asked him about the crosses. But before we go out of 
Amecameca, or Ameca, as it is often called, let me say that it is a very 
pretty place, and reminded us of Interlachen or Meiringen, in Switzerland. 
It is 8000 feet above the level of the sea, lies in a sort of valley, and has 



286 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




THE DOME OF POPOCATEPETL FEOJI TLAMACAS. 



an abundant supply of water, which rolls down from the mountain and 
sparkles in numerous rivulets that flow through every street. The water 
serves to keep the streets clean, and the clean streets seem to have impelled 
the inhabitants to keep their houses in presentable condition ; the walls 
are white or in bright colors, and altogether Amecameca is one of the most 
attractive little towns we have seen since we crossed the Rio Grande. 

" There was a crowd of people in the Plaza Mayor, and in the market- 
place, and the people seemed to move around more actively than in the 
capital. Perhaps it was the greater purity of the air, though one might 



THE EOAD TO TLAMACAS. 



287 



think that its increased rarity would have an enervating effect. Anyhow'-, 
it was cooler at Ameca than in the city, and that may have been the cause 
of it. Many persons predict that this little town at the foot of the great 
mountain will be a fashionable resort at no distant day, as it certainly 
has many attractive features. 

" We had a ride of fifteen miles to the rancho of Tlamacas, where we 
were to spend the night. The pack-mules went off in advance, while we 
sat down to a good breakfast which the colonel had ordered in the Hotel 
Ferrocarril. Then we mounted our horses, and after the dance I have 
mentioned we got away. 

" Our road led among fields of barley, the lines between them being 
shown by hedges of maguey or other members of the cactus family, and 
now and then by rows of poplar and willow trees. The way ascended 
with more or less steadiness, and after a time we passed from the cul- 
tivated ground 
into forests of 
pine and other 
mountain trees. 
Some parts of 
the lower hills 
were devoted to 
pastures, and the 
cattle in them 
were in good con- 
dition. They are 
nourished upon a 
rich bunch-grass 
that grows here ; 
and scattered . 
about here and 
there we saw a 

good many this- " " 

ties, together 

with beds of mountain flowers. "We passed a few 
haciendas, the last being that of Tomacoco, where 
there is a church very much in ruins. 

" The pine forest begins after we leave the 
plain, and as we go up among the hills the pines '?■ 

are reduced in size, as they always are on the sides 
of high mountains. Our horses have hard work to Mexican saw-mill. 




288 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



scramble up the steej) path, but they are evidently accustomed to it and 
toil on bravely. The guide warns us to be very careful in case we dis- 
mount, as the horses have a trick of snatching their bridles out of one's 
hands and starting down the mountain at the best speed they can make. 




HACIENDA OF TOilACOCO. 



Fred's horse tried this and succeeded, but he didn't go far, as he was 
caught by one of the soldiers, who hapj^ened to be in the rear, where the 
path was narrow. 

" Do not suppose that the trees were small ; some of them were two 
feet and more in diameter and seventy or eighty feet high, and the air was 
full of the sweet resinous odor for which a pine forest is famous and that 
is so welcome to most nostrils. For one, I do not know a more charming 
perfume than that of a forest of pines ; and Fred agrees with me in this. 
It was difficult to realize that we were in Mexico. Had I been brouo-ht 
here blindfolded, and then asked to guess where we were, I should have 
named 'New England, Wisconsin, or California long before thinking of the 
land of the Aztecs. We passed several saw-mills of the most primitive 
character. They were operated by two men, one standing above the log 
and the other below it, and alternately pushing and pulling the saw. The 



AN INDIAN TKADITION. 



289 



cutting was done by the downward stroke of the saw, as in the ordinary 
saw-mills of the Eastern States. 

" Higher and higher seemed the great mountain as we slowly zigzagged 
in his direction. Sometimes he was hidden from our view by the trees or 
the shape of the hills, and again he came suddenly before us and seemed 




VOLCANEROS (mINERS) 



to signal us to persevere. Up and up we went ; and wlien M^e reached 
Tlamacas we were 13,000 feet above the sea, or more than 4000 feet above 
the town whence we set out in the forenoon. 

" Our guide told us that there "is a tradition among the Indians that 
Old Popo and the "White "Woman were once living beings. They were a 
19 



290 THE BOY TKAVELLEKS IN MEXICO. 

giant and giantess, and for some disobedience of the gods they were changed 
into mountains. The giantess was struck dead, and that is why she lies 
stretched out on her bier and covered with a white robe ; Old Popo was 
the giant, and he was merely rooted to the spot where he stood. He 
shows his grief by occasionally shedding tears of lava, which rolls down in 
great floods, and in the sobbing and sighing that form a part of his weep- 
ing he breathes huge volumes of smoke. Sometimes his grief is so great 
that he shakes in agony, and then the whole earth is moved. Evidently 
he doesn't feel as badly now as he used to, as he has behaved very well for 
three centuries and more. 

" It was lucky we brought a supply of bedding and provisions, for 
there was absolutely nothing at Tlamacas except some huts of rough 
boards and stone. The rancho stands in a valley, and we descended quite 
a little distance before reaching it ; this descent seemed to us a waste of 
labor, as we would be obliged to make up for it by another ascent. 

" Several times during the day we met donkeys and mules laden with 
ice and sulphur, the two commodities which are produced by the great 
mountain. Ice is cut from the places where it accumulates. The city of 
Mexico has long been supplied from here, just as the cities at the base of 
Mount Etna are supplied from that famous volcano. It is packed upon 
mules or donkeys and carried to the railway or to the canal at Chalco, 
w^hence it is brought to its destination. The sulphur is taken from the 
crater, as we shall presently see, brought as far as the snow-line on the 
backs of men, or slid down the steep side of the mountain ; and from 
there it goes to the railway on the backs of beasts of burden. 

" Ice-machines in the city have somewhat interfered with the business 
of the Indians who bring ice from the mountain, and may possibly break 
it up altogether. The ice is like that from glaciers all the world over, and 
resembles snow more than it does the product of the E'ew England lakes 
and rivers in the winter season. It is sold in the city as nieve (snow), and 
the boys who peddle ice-cream in the capital call out, ^ Nieve! tome nieve P 
as they go about with their wares. 

"We managed to sleep fairly well in the huts at Tlamacas, and were 
tired enough to go to rest very early. Erom our supply of canned pro- 
visions we made up an excellent supper, and there was a material addition 
to it in the shape of some fresh chickens, whicli one of our muleteers had 
brought along just as a speculation. He argued to himself that we would 
be glad to buy chickens in addition to the stock of food we had on hand, 
and so we were. We gladly paid him double what the chickens would 
have cost at Amecameca. Mr. Arms suggested that possibly the chickens 



SLEEPING AT A HIGH ELEVATION. 



291 




had cost the man nothing, as thej 
were probably taken from a chicken- 
house during the night while the legit- 
imate owner was slumbering. 

" The thermometer went down to 
forty-two degrees during the night, 
and when we started in the morning ^^^ ^.^g pjjjj, uegion. 

it was forty-seven degrees. The vol- 
canero was to call us at five o'clock ; and for fear he would not be around 



292 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



/:- 



x^- 




at that hour, Colonel "Watson set an 
alarm clock, which he had stowed 
away in his hand-bag. The clock 
fired itself off at five and waked ev- 
erybody, the volcanero included. 

" We shivered in the sharp air of 

the morning while taking coffee and 

biscuits for an early breakfast, and were mounted and off before six 

o'clock. Between us and the volcano there was a strip of pines and then a 



EL PICO DEL FRAILE. 



AKRIVAL AT LA CRUZ. 293 

stretch of black volcanic sand up to the snow-line. It was a hard struggle 
for our poor horses, and Fred and I wished to dismount and spare them 
the exertion ; but the guide warned us to save all our strength for the 
climb that we would be compelled to make on foot, so we stuck to our 
saddles in spite of our sympathy for the suffering brutes. 

"We had a magnificent view as we ascended, and Doctor Bronson, who 
went no farther than the snow-line, said he was amply paid for his fatigue, 
even though he was obliged to forego the view from the top. We looked 
down into tlie Yalley of Puebla, we studied the landscape as though it 
were an out-spread map, and we watched the sunlight playing on the hills 
and on the great cone that dazzled before us. Many times Fred and I 
were reminded of our ascent of Fusiyama, but we found the scene far 
more grand and extensive. The summit of Fusiyama is nearly four 
thousand feet lower than that of Old Popo, and it can be readily under- 
stood that the monarch of Mexico far surpasses that of Japan in grandeur. 
Fusiyama, too, does not exhibit any valleys like those of Mexico and 
Puebla, deep set in the encircling mountains, and gemmed with lakes that 
flash in the clear sunlight. And, furthermore, it has no towering peak 
like that of Orizaba to pierce the horizon, and no masses of mountains at 
nearly all the points of compass to suggest that- the earth was once a rag- 
ing sea that had suddenly become petrified. 

"We reached the side of a deep barranca, and descended to where a 
stream dashed along a rocky bed. Then we slowly climbed the other side 
of the barranca, and a little way above it we came to the limit of the trees. 
They did not dwindle to tiny dwarfs a foot or so in height, as we often 
find them on mountains, but stopped all at once while yet of respectable 
size, though much smaller than when we first entered the pine forest. 
Beyond the barranca we entered the worst of the volcanic sand, and our 
horses stopped repeatedly to take breath as they waded through it. 

" In about two hours after leaving Tlamacas we came to a rocky ridge 
on which was a cross. 

"'This is La Cruz,' said our guide, 'and here you must leave your 
horses. They can go no farther.' 

"We dismounted. According to Humboldt's figures, we were 15,000 
feet above the level of the sea, and 2500 below the summit of the vol- 
cano. We were 1000 feet higher than the summit of Fusiyama, nearly 
as hiffh as that of Mont Blanc, and 9000 feet above that of Mount Wash- 
ington, and yet we still had almost half a mile of perpendicular height to 
make before reaching our destination ! 

" There was a wide strip of sand between us and the snow-line, and 
19-^ 



294 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



through this we walked painfully, slipping and sliding backward almost as 
fast as we went on. Our progress was very slow, and the effort required 
was great. Fred and I were glad that Doctor Bronson did not try it, as 
he would have been sure to break down long before the snow-line was 
reached. Mr. Arms is spare and tall and a fine walker, and Colonel "Wat- 
son is a small man, full of youthful vigor. It was fortunate that they 
were, and it was also fortunate that Fred and I had had experience in hill 
climbing, and then, too, we were younger than either of the others. 

" When we reached the edge of the snow we sat down and rested. 
Some of the peons had fallen behind, and we prided ourselves that we had 

shown the Mexicans that Americans 
know how to climb high mountains 
without turning back for want of 
breath. 

" We ate some of the solid food 
and drank some of the cold tea we 
had bottled expressly for the oc- 
casion before leaving Tlamacas. 
When we had thoroughly rested 
and refreshed ourselves we put on 
our spiked shoes, covered them with 
the woollen stockings, and, armed 
with aljjenstocks and aided each by 
a volcanero, we attacked the great 
icy cone of the giant Popocatepetl. 
The volcaneros carried our overcoats 
and had them ready to wrap around us whenever we stopped. 

" Fortunately for us, the snow was in the best condition for ascending ; it 
was like a very hard drift, softened by the sun just enough to give a good 
foothold but not sufficiently to let our feet sink more than an inch or so 
below the surface. Our principal guide went ahead and we followed in 
his tracks ; every few minutes we paused to rest and breathe, and long 
before we reached the crater the lightness of the air was such that our 
halts were longer than our periods of ascent. 

"The blood rose to our faces, our veins throbbed, and for a time our 
heads seemed on the verge of bursting. We appreciated the advice of a 
gentleman in the capital, that no one with the least tendency to heart 
trouble, or one with weak lungs or a tendency to corpulence, should under- 
take the ascent of the volcano ; and if we were to add anything to the 
advice, it would be that everybody else should refrain from making the 




NOT A GOOD CLIMBER. 



CAUGHT IN A CLOUD. 



295 



attempt ; it is the hardest venture we ever made in mountain climbing, 
and we certainly would not again undertake it or urge a friend to do so. 

" We left to one side the Pico del Fraile, a pinnacle of porphyry that 
shoots up into the air like the spire of a church. There was a deep chasm 
like an enormous moat at the side of the Pico, and we asked our guide if 
anybody had ever passed the chasm and climbed to the dizzy top. His 
face wore a smile of incredulity as he pronounced the feat impossible, and 
furthermore said there was nothing there to pay for the effort. Colonel 
Watson asked him, in sheer bravado, if he would undertake to escort us 
there, but he shook his head without making any audible reply. It is 
quite possible that he suspected the colonel of ' chaffing.' 

" Suddenly we were enveloped in a cloud so dense that we could see 
only a few yards in any direction. The guide ordered us to kee]3 close 
together ; and if by any accident we should become separated, we were to 
call out immediately, and also keep our faces and feet directed to the 
ascent of the mountain. We obeyed his instructions, but it was our good- 
fortune that the cloud did not long remain to trouble us. It disappeared 
as suddenly as it had come, and we had a fine view of the Yalley of Puebla 
and of the great mountain, the White Woman. As we rose to and above 
its level it lost all resemblance to the recumbent figure that gives its 
name, and became nothing but a broken mass of rocks and snow-drifts." 



G 



.» 







"no mountain for me!" 



29G 



THE BOY TEAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



CHAPTER XIX. 



THE ASCENT OF POPOCATEPETL CONTINUED. — LAST STEPS OF THE UPWARD 
JOURNEY. — LOSS OF LIFE ON THE MOUNTAIN. — HOW THREE INDIANS PER- 
ISHED.— THE CRATER OF THE VOLCANO.— HOW THE SULPHUR-MINERS EXIST. 
—DANGERS OF THE CRATER.— THE SOLFATARAS.— CAUGHT IN A STORM.— VIEW 
FROM THE SUMMIT. — SCENES IN THE CRATER. — A RAPID DESCENT. — TOBOG- 
GANING ON A GRAND SCALE. — HOW THE SULPHUR-MINE ORIGINATED. — NO 
ERUPTION IN SEVEN THOUSAND YEARS.— RETURN TO AMECAMECA.— EXPLORA- 
TION OF THE SURROUNDING COUNTRY.— TOMBS AND THEIR CONTENTS.— CURI- 
OUS INSTANCE OF PRESERVATION.— MONTE SACRO.— " MODERN ANTIQUITIES."— 
INDIANS WORSHIPPING THE VOLCANO.— EXPERIENCE WITH A RATERO. 

" T^HE snow hardened a good deal as we neared the summit," continued 
-■- Frank; "in fact it w&s ranch more like ice than snow, and the 

walking became more difficult every minute. In some places it was as 

smooth as glass, and but for our 
outside stockings and the spikes 
in our shoes we would have been 
constantlj^ slipping. Even as it 
was we had a good many falls, 
but nobody was seriously hurt by 
them. There was no danger of a 
long slide down the mountain, as 
the guide took us along a route 
where there were many hum- 
mocks, or pillars of ice, so that 
we brought up against them 
whenever we had the misfortune 
to fall down. 

" Our woollen mittens were a 
great protection to our hands, 
which often came in contact with 
these pillars and would have been 
cut by them, as their tops and 
edges were sharp. We are told 
that persons who have made the 




'hurrah for the top!" 



ascent without gloves or mittens 



A STRANGE SCENE. 



297 




298 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

have had their hands so badly lacerated that they could not be used for 
days afterwards. 

" We had no serious accidents, which is not always the case with par- 
ties making the ascent of Old Popo. Sometimes the snow slides down in 
the form of avalanches, and occasionally the sand does the same thing. 
To be caught by one of these avalanches is almost certain death, but hap- 
pily the guides know the mountain and its peculiarities so well that such 
accidents are rare. Parties have been overwhelmed by storms of hail in 
the same way that a party on Mont Blanc lost their lives several years ago. 
Considerable areas of sand and snow are sometimes set in motion by the 
tread of one's feet upon them, and the unfortunate climber who has 
caused it is carried down and dashed to death on tlie rocks below. 

" One story that we heard was of three Indians who were descending 
the volcano. One of them saw a depression in the snow like a furrow, and 
thought it offered an easy footing. He went to it, and suddenly disap- 
peared from the sight of his companions. As they moved towards the 
place to ascertain what had happened, they felt the crust sinking beneath 
them, and had barely time to scramble back before a considerable area dis- 
appeared in a crevasse. No trace of the missing Indian was ever found. 

" It seemed as though our toil would never end, when suddenly Fred, 
who was in advance, gave a shout and sat down. He swung his hat in the 
air, and I wondered what he meant by it. 

" ' Here we are !' shouted Fred ; ' we're at the crater.' 

"I hurried up as fast as I could, and sure enough there it was, a great 
chasm a thousand or more feet deep, and fully half a mile across. The 
sides narrow somewhat, so that a little way down you can make out pretty 
nearly all of the outline. The bottom of the crater can be called flat in a 
general way, though it is the farthest possible from the ideal of a ball-room 
floor. Steam and the vapors of sulphur rise from solfataras scattered over 
the bottom, and from these solfataras the sulphur is constantly forming. 
The supply is inexhaustible, as the formation goes on a great deal faster 
than the miners can remove the product. 

"We scrambled down perhaps 200 feet, to where the edge of the 
crater hung over like a precipice. Here there is a malacate, or apparatus 
for hoisting out the sulphur. The men working in the sulphur-mines 
descend and ascend by this apparatus ; in fact there is no other way of 
getting in or out of the crater. 

" Our guide told us that the men run great risks, as stones are con- 
stantly falling from the sides of the crater, whence they are dislodged by 
the frost and by the action of the steam and sulphur jets. Pumblings 



A HARD LIFE. 



299 




BRINGING ICE FROM THE MOUNTAIN. 



like the premonitions of an earthquake are frequently heard, and some- 
times the ground trembles so much as to make one's footing unsteady. In 
addition to this is the effect of the sulphur, which rots the clothes of the 
men, and causes their teeth to fall out. They sleep in caves in the sides 
of the crater, and on two or three occasions a cavef ul of men has been 



300 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

overwhelmed and killed by tlie stony avalanche. Altogether the place 
did not appear attractive as a residence, and I was not surprised to learn 
that the men receive high wages, and even at the rate of pay they are not 
easily obtained. They remain a month at a time in the crater without 
leaving it, and are then replaced by new men and allowed a vacation among 
their friends in the country at the base of the mountain. 

" We could have been lowered down by the malacate, but concluded 
not to make the attempt. We could not do so without spending the night 
in the crater, and this we were not prepared for ; Doctor Bronson would 
be waiting for us, and would fear some accident had happened ; though, as 
for that matter, we could have sent one of the peons to tell him ; and fur- 
thermore, we thought we should run more risk than we would be compen- 
sated for by the experience. A party of three gentlemen went down 
there a few weeks before we did, and one of them became exhausted, and 
his life was saved with great difficulty. Our guide said, Avhether truth- 
fully or not we don't know, that a German gentleman died there a few 
years ago, and since then the miners do not desire visitors among them. 

" The crater is not at the top of the mountain, the highest point of Po- 
pocatepetl being to' the west of this great chasm, and about 1000 feet more 
elevated. It is a sharp cone, and so difficult of ascent that few have suc- 
ceeded in reaching the summit. There is some dispute as to whether it 
has actually been ascended, as the Government offers a reward of $500 to 
any one who proves that he has been to its toj). Some American gentle- 
men in the capital city say it has been done, but the difficulty of officially 
proving the accomplishment of the feat would be more than the value of 
the reward. Hence it is not claimed at all ; and consequently, the nega- 
tive testimony favors the assumption that no one has yet scaled the height 
of Popocatepetl. 

" We remained nearly two hours on the summit, sliivering in tlie cold 
air in spite of our tliick overcoats, while at the same time the heat of the 
sun scorched our faces. While w^e ^vere there a horrasca, or storm, came 
on, and the air was suddenly darkened. We sought shelter beneath a pro- 
jecting rock, and watched the cloud of snow as it eddied and whirled 
around the crater. At such times it becomes so dark in the crater that 
the men cannot work ; they retire to their caves and wait till the storm is 
over. At the same time the fires of the solfataras become very distinct, 
and recall the description of Dante's Inferno. 

" The storm lasted about twenty minutes and then cleared away, the 
sun coming out as brightly as ever and the air growing comparatively 
still. These storms are rarely of long duration, but they are to be dreaded 



TEMPERATUEE IN THE CRATER. 



301 



whenever they come; the temperature falls far below the freezing-point, 
and the wind blows a gale. But down in the crater it is warm enough, in 
consequence of the steam and heat from the solfataras. The snow melts as 
soon as it strikes the bottom, and renders walking a matter of diiBcultj. 







rt^"^^ 



Hi 



^ ^>'^ ^''H A^lf P 



1* t^ 




PACK-TRAIN FROM TLAIIACAS. 



302 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

" The story of our descent of the mountain is quickly told. The work- 
men had dug a straight trench in the volcanic sand, and it is down this 
trench that they send the sulphur by the simple force of gravity. It is 
placed in sacks, the sacks are piled on a petate, or mat of bulrush, and 
when once started the mat and its cargo slide down with great velocity. 

" For two reals each of us hired a petate of one of the men at the 
hoisting-w^orks, and with our volcaneros to guide the impromptu tobog- 
gans, we went down with great rapidity and ease and without accident. It 
reminded us of the descent of Vesuvius ; the sand is much like that of 
the famous volcano of !N^aples, and we were very glad to be able to make 
use of it. 

" I said we came without accident ; for the sake of exactness I must 
add that Colonel Watson was pitched out of his vehicle at the end of his 
ride, and stopped with his head and shoulders buried in the sand.- Fred had 
a similar experience, with the difference that he went in feet foremost ; as 
neither suffered any injury, and was ready to laugh over the mishap, my 
original statement holds good. 

" The Doctor had gone back to the sulphur rancho at Tlamacas, and 
thither we followed him as soon as we found our horses. It was too late 
to get to Amecameca that evening, and so we had another night among 
the sulphur refiners. The sulphur is brought here just as it is dug from 
the crater of the volcano ; it is refined at Tlamacas and made ready for 
market, and is sent thence to Amecameca on the backs of donkeys or 
mules. General Ochoa says that in spite of its abundance he cannot com- 
pete at the coast towns with the sulphur from Mediterranean ports, and 
his only market is in the interior of Mexico. He intends to place some 
improved machinery at the edge of the crater, so as to reduce the expense 
of hoisting out the crude material ; and in this way he hopes to lower his 
price. His plan is to run his machinery by means of the jet of air from 
one of the large solfataras, which he estimates at twenty horse-power. 

" While we were absent on the mountain General Ochoa's agent told 
Doctor Bronson the following story about how the general came to own 
the mountain : 

" ' Serious attention to the richness and abundance of sulphur in the 
crater of Popocatepetl was first called by Baron von Humboldt ; the exist- 
ence of sulphur in the crater Avas known long before, as the Spaniards 
seem to have made use of it in the time of the Conquest. In one of his 
letters to the Emperor Cortez says, "As for sulphur, I liave already made 
mention to your Majesty of a mountain in this province from which smoke 
issues ; out of it sulphur has been taken by a Spaniard, who descended 



NO ERUPTION FOR SEVENTY CENTURIES. 



303 



seventy or eighty fathoms, by means of a rope attached to his body below 
his arms ; from which source we have been enabled to obtain sufficient 
supplies, although it is attended with danger." There is other evidence 
that the conquerors obtained sulphur from the mountain, but their meth- 
ods were of the most primitive character. 

" ' About the year 1850, an enterprising Mexican named Corchado 
visited the crater, and brought away samples of the sulphur, which he car- 
ried to Puebla. A company was formed, and a considerable amount of 
sulphur was taken out, but owing to lawsuits and political troubles, the en- 
terprise was soon abandoned. When General Oclioa was a student in the 
mining section of the military college his tutor was a gentleman who had 




AN IMPROVED REFINERY. 



known Baron Humboldt, and was greatly impressed with his remarks 
about the value of the sulphur deposits in the volcano. Through this gen- 
tleman's advice the general applied to the Government for permission to 
work the deposits, and he obtained a concession that gave him control of 
the mountain down to the limit of vegetation. Afterwards he purchased 
the rancho of Tlamacas, and established a refinery there ; he has spent a 
great deal of time in the crater, and as he is an able geologist he has much 
to say about it that is interesting.' 

" According to his theory, which is based on the lignite formed at the 
bottom of the crater, there has not been an eruption of Popo for seven 
thousand years ; by that he means an eruption on a scale corresponding to 
the size of the mountain, and not an occasional disturbance, in which the 



304 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




LOOKING FROM THE TOP OF POPOCATEPETL. 



crater throws up a few discharges of stones and an nnnsnal quantit}^ of 
steam and sulphur vapors. In Prescott's 'History of the Conquest of Mex- 
ico' there is an account of an eruption in 1521, taken from a letter of 
Diego Ordaz, one of the captains under Cortez ; but modern writers think 
that Ordaz mistook a violent thunder-storm on the summit of the volcano 
for an eruption. From what we saw at the crater we can readily believe 
that he made such a mistake. 

" The view from the top of tlie mountain was the grandest we have 
ever taken, and one we will never forget while we live. The air is so 
clear that distance is strangely diminished ; towns and villages that seem 
to lie at our feet are really many, many miles away, and as we looked to 



DESCENT INTO THE CRATER. 



305 



the eastward our guide told us that the streak of silver bordering the hori- 
zon was the Gulf of Mexico. Mountain, valley, table-land, lakes, plain, 
forest, all were spread before us, and in tlie range of vision from the top 
of Popocatepetl an area of twenty thousand square miles is said to be in- 
cluded. On one side of the mountain you can look down into the tierra 
caliente of the coast region, while on the other the eye is lost among the 
mountains and table-lands that stretch away until lost in the limitless 
distance." 

So ends Frank's account of their visit to the great mountain of Mexico. 




A DANGKRO0S PLACE. 



The party returned to Amecameca, and determined to remain there a 
day or two to make some explorations in the vicinity, and also to rest 
from their fatigues. During their stay Fred found the following descrip- 
tion of a visit to the crater of Popocatepetl by an artist, Mr. Frank Kel- 
lott, which he carefully copied into his note-book. We have obtained the 
youth's permission to copy the account, and it is certain to interest our 
readers. 

" We followed a narrow foot-path," said Mr, Kellott, " until we reached 
a shelf, where we were seated in a skid and let down by a windlass 500 
feet or so to a landing-place. From this we clambered down to a 
20 



306 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

second windlass and a second skid, wliicli was the most fearful of all, 
because we were dangling about, without anything to steady ourselves, 
as we descended before the mouth of one of tliose yawning caverns which 
are called resjpiraderos, or ' breathing-holes ' of the crater. They are so 
called from the fresh air and horrid sounds that continually issue from 
them. But we shut our eyes and clung to the rope as we whirled round 
and round in mid-air until we reached another landing-place about 500 
feet lower. From this point we clambered down as best we could until 
we came among the men digging up cinders from which sulphur, in the 
form of brimstone, is made. 

"We took no measurements while in the crater, and heights and dis- 
tances can only be given approximately. We only know that all things 
are on a scale so vast that Old Pluto might here have forged new thunder- 
bolts, and Milton's Satan might have here found the material for his sul- 
phurous bed. All was strange and wild and frightful. 

"We crawled into several of the breathing-holes, but nothing was there 
except darkness visible. The sides and bottom were for the most part 
polished by the molten mass which had passed through them, and if it had 
not been for the ropes around our waists, we should have slipped and 
fallen we knew not whither. The stones we threw in were lost to sound 
unless they hit upon a projecting rock and fell from shelf to shelf. The 
deep darkness was fearful to contemplate. What must have been the 
effect when each one of these breathing-holes was vomiting up liquid fire 
and sulphur into the basin where we stood ? How immeasurable must be 
the lake whose overflowings fill such a cavity as this !" 

The region around the base of Popocatepetl seems to have been densely 
peopled at some remote period, if we may judge by the ruins that lie 
scattered about, by the numerous tombs on the hills and in the valleys, and 
by the great quantity of pottery brought to light by excavations. Some 
antiquarians who have made researches here think that the cradle of the 
human race is to be found in Mexico, and that the people of this region 
gave the arts and sciences to Egypt and the rest of the Old World. 

This conundrum was a perplexing one for our young friends. They 
did not try to solve it, but contented themselves with investigations on 
their own account. 

The first object of their attention was Monte Sacro, which is in the 
town of Amecameca. It is a volcanic hill about 300 feet high, and con- 
tains a grotto that was turned into a hermitage at the time of the Con- 
quest. A church was built tliere and a cemetery laid out, and as the 
traditions of the old time became mingled with those of later days, the 



AZTEC RUINS. 



807 



place acquired great sanctity. It abounds in tombs, some of tliem very 
old, and there were strange figures upon many of these resting-places of 
the dead, which none of the party could decipher. 

At Tlalmanalco, a few miles from Araecameca, there are the ruins of 
a convent which was begun in the time of Cortez, but was never finished. 
There are the fragments of walls, with a portico formed by five arches ; 




these arches are supported by slender columns, which are covered with 
delicate carvings and suggest an Oriental character; they reminded our 
friends of what they had seen in temples in India, and Fred was so 
interested in them that he made a sketch of the ruins. According to 
M. Charnay, the carvings were executed by Indian artists, after designs 
furnished by the Spaniards. That the arches have stood so long is proof 
of the excellence of their construction. 



308 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 





BURIAL-GROUND OF TENENEPANCO. 



All around this place great quantities of pottery have been unearthed. 
The story goes that thousands of vases and other precious things were 
found during the construction of the railway ; they were divided among 
the contractors and are widely scattered, few, if any, of them ever 
having reached the IS^ational Museum. 

Quantities of so-called antiquities were oiiered to our friends, but 
they had been warned long before and did not purchase any. The 
"antiquities" are modern, and so great is the demand for them that a 
considerable number of people is employed in their manufacture. The 
dealers heighten the imposition by enjoining great caution on the part 
of the purchaser, lest the Government shall ascertain that he is in posses- 
sion of the precious relic, and despoil him of it. 

A few years ago an enterprising antiquarian spent several days in 



EELICS OF ANTIQUITY. 



309 



the neighborhood of Tlamacas, on the very foot of Popocatepetl. Among 
other places, he examined the cemetery of Tenenepauco, which seems to 
have been of considerable extent ; he opened a great many tombs, and 
found that the bodies had mostly been buried in a sitting posture, after 
the manner of many ancient people. A curious circumstance which he 
discovered was that while the bones were so decayed that they crumbled 
to dust on being touched, the brain was very often intact and well 
preserved. He attributed this condition to the high elevation and the 
peculiar salts in the soil ; one brain in particular was in perfect condition, 
while all the skull was mouldered away. He was in some doubt at first, 
but an examination showed that there was no mistake ; the two lobes 
were there, and the lines of the blood-vessels were distinctly traceable. 
The same chemical combination that destroyed the bones preserved the 
soft tissues of the body. 




i~-^5*«^5fV-^ 



VASES FOUND AT TENENEPANCO. 



He took out a great number of vases, cups, marbles, necklaces, toy 
chariots, kitchen utensils, beads, caricatures of warriors, and many other 
things illustrating the life of the people who made them. Some of the 
cups were beautifully decorated, but unfortunately their exposure to the 
air caused the colors to fade. Ordinary utensils of earthen-ware were 
very soft when brought to light, and had to be handled with the greatest 
care, but they hardened by exposure and were solid enough after a few 
hours. 



310 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IX MEXICO. 



The youths learned that one tribe of Indians was accustomed to wor- 
ship the great volcano as a deity at the time of the Conquest, and the 
practice is still maintained. They have caves in the forest on the easterly 
side of the mountain, and once a year they go there to perform their 
worship ; no stranger is allowed to accompany them, and any one who 
persists in following them runs the risk of his life. Some years ago, so 




CARICATURE OF AN AZTEC WARRIOR. 



the story runs, an inquisitive white man followed a party of these Indians 
into the forest, and was never seen again. What became of him is a 
mystery ; the Indians claimed that they knew nothing of his fate, and 
there is no positive proof to the contrary. 

Frank had an experience of the skill of the Mexican thief during his 
stay at Amecameca. He had dismounted from his horse in front of the 
Hotel Ferrocarril, and while he was busy arranging the stirrup on one side 
of the saddle, a thief crept up and stole the other one. He not only stole 
the stirrnp but the strap that held it, and the youth was obliged to invest 
in another. 



ADROITNESS OF THIEVES. 311 

"I'm surprised you've had nothing of the kind before," said the pro- 
prietor of the hotel when he heard of the occurrence. " That was the 
work of a rater oP 

" What is a ratero ?" Frank asked, 

"He's a thief peculiar to this part of Mexico," was the reply, "or 
rather, I should say he belongs to the whole country, and the finest 
quality of him is produced around here. He will open and rob a trunk 
while carrying it on his back between the hotel and the railway-station ; 
he will cut off the lining of a railway-carriage in less than two minutes, 
steal rail way- ties, and anything else that he can lift; and as for ordinary 
thefts, his superior cannot be found anywhere. Several years ago the 
authorities of this town decided to light it with petroleum lamps, but the 
very first night they did so the lamps were stolen by the rateros, and the 
town was in darkness as it had been before." 

Frank was able to add a few notes to what he and Fred had already 
ascertained about Mexican thieves. The youths discussed the subject, and 
came to the conclusion that the tropics produced more adroit pilferers than 
the temperate zones, at least such had been their experience. 




ANCIENT AZTEC VASES. 



" It is no wonder," said Fred, " that these people have become experts 
in stealing. Think how they have been despoiled by the Spaniards, who 
stole their country and all it contained, and reduced the people to the 
condition of a subject race. ISTo wonder they have sought to revenge 
themselves on their conquerors, and their mildness of conduct is to be 
greatly admired, in view of what they have suffered. The condition of a 
Mexican peon is such that, if I may be permitted the paradoxical state- 
ment, he is obliged to steal in order to make an honest living." 

Thus musing, they returned to the city with the Doctor and their late 
companions in the ascent of Popocatepetl. 



312 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



CHAPTER XX. 

RAPACIOUS CARGADORES.— OLD BOOK-STORES IN THE PORTALES.— PUBLIC SCHOOLS 
IN THE MEXICAN CAPITAL ; THE PUPILS IN ATTENDANCE.— THEATRES AND HOS- 
PITALS.— A THEATRE SUPPORTING A HOSPITAL.— THE BROTHERS OF CHARITY.— 
INSIDE THE THEATRES.— A PERFORMANCE OF OPERA.— A MINOR THEATRE.— LIS- 
TENING TO A MEXICAN PERFORMANCE.— BULL- FIGHTING IN MEXICO.— A DIS- 
GRACEFUL SPORT— ORIGIN OF THE BULL- FIGHT.— MARIONETTE THEATRES.— 
THE PROCESSIONS.— MEXICAN LOVE FOR COCK-FIGHTING.— COMMINGLING OF 
RELIGIOUS CEREMONIALS AND AMUSEMENTS. — THE POSADA AND THE PASTO- 
RELA ; THEIR PECULIARITIES.— KILLING JUDAS. 

THE train by wliicli our friends returned to the capital left Amecameca 
at 1.20 in the afternoon, and reached the San Lazero station at 4 
o'clock. A crowd of cargadores swooped down on the baggage, and for a 
time threatened to disappear with it in as many directions as there were 

single pieces, but by dint of watclif ulness 
and energy it was rescued and placed in 
charge of a runner from the hotel. The 
Morelos, or Interoceanic Railway, the one 
by which the party had travelled, is dis- 
tinctively a Mexican line ; it was built by 
Mexican capital, or capital borrowed by 
Mexicans, and the management is Mexi- 
can throughout. When finished it will 
be literally what its name implies, as it 
will connect the Atlantic Ocean at Yera 
Cruz with the Pacific at Acapulco. At 
the time our friends were in Mexico 
work was being pushed on the eastern 
division of the line (between Vera Cruz 
and the capital), and its managers were 
confidsnt of completing it by the end of 
1890 or 1891. At last accounts the com- 
pletion of the western division (from the 
capital to Acapulco) was very much in 

WANTS A SOUVENIR. tllC futUre. 




EAKE COLLECTIONS OF OLD BOOKS. 



313 



It seemed to Frank and Fred that they had been away from the city 
for a month or two, when in reality they had been gone less than a week. 
The next morning they were out early to ascertain if any changes had 
taken place during their absence — whether any new buildings had been 
erected or old ones demolished, new streets opened, or new avenues laid 
out. They strolled through the j>ortales, and stopped at the little shops 
established between the arches of the covered way that shelters the side- 
walks from sun and rain, to bargain for old books and odds and ends of 
curiosities. Fred had received a letter from a friend at home asking him 
to pick up certain old books if they were to be found, and he made many 




K-'l If * * 





KUINS OF SAN LAZERO. 



inquiries for the volumes. One after another, he found them, and the 
search roused in him a fever for book-buying which did not abate until 
he had invested several dollars in antique specimens of the printer's art. 

^' How does it happen that so many old books are sold at these stalls 
in the portales ?" he said to Doctor Bronson on his return to the hotel. 

" It comes from the confiscation of the Church property," was the re- 
ply. " For three centuries the churches and monasteries had been gather- 



314 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



ing a fine collection of books for their libraries, and the confiscation of 
ecclesiastical buildings under the Laws of the Reform threw the most of 
these libraries into the market. Some of them were bought for specula- 
tion and others for private use ; in either case they were pretty sure to 




ON THE WAY TO CHTTRCH. 



drift sooner or later into the hands of the dealers. Gentlemen familiar 
with the subject say that Mexico is to-day the best place in the world 
for a book-collector to find what he is looking for." 

From the portales the youths extended their walk through several of 
the principal streets, and reached the hotel just in time for breakfast. On 
their way they passed a school just as the pupils were going in, and this 
circumstance gave a hint on which they acted at once. 

They proceeded to collect information concerning the public schools, 
in addition to what they had already learned. They found that there were 
in the capital 101 free secular schools, with an aggregate attendance of 
7400 pupils ; then there were thirty-seven Protestant and twenty-four 
Catholic schools, all free — the former with 1300 pupils, and the latter with 
4000. The Catholic schools are held in large buildings, as will be readily 



HOSPITALS AND ASYLUMS. 



315 



seen from the number of pupils in the twenty-four schools ; while the Prot- 
estant establishments are on a smaller scale. There are something more 
than 100 private schools for primary instruction, with an average of thirty 
pupils to each school. All the wealthy families have their children taught 
by private tutors or governesses, but the grade of their education is not 
high. The whole number of educational establishments in the city is a 
little short of 300, with an attendance in the aggregate of about 16,000. 

Mention has already been made of the San Carlos Academy of Fine 
Arts, the Conservatory of Music, the Military Academy, and the Medical 
College. To these should be added the Law School and the preparatory 
schools and colleges of Architecture, Theology, Commerce, and Astronomy. 




MONKS AT THEIR MUSICAL EXERCISE. 



Some of these have been founded by the Government in recent times, 
while others are descended from those established by the Catholic Church 
in its days of prosperity. 

Of some twenty hospitals and asylums of different names and kinds, 
fully two-thirds are the successors of benevolent institutions founded by 
the Church, The oldest is the hospital of Jesus ISTazareno, and was found- 
ed by Cortez ; he left a large endowment for it, and the hospital is still 



316 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



supported by it in spite of many attempts by governments and individuals 
to break his will. The last effort in this direction was in 1885, when the 
will was sustained by the Mexican courts. The bad management of the 
hospital in its early days led to the founding of the San Hipolito hospital 
by Bernardo Alvarez in 1567. The pious people that joined him became 




A BKLLE OF THE OPERA. 



a regular monastic order under the name of Brothers of Charity. The 
order was suppressed in 1820 ; the hospital fund passed into the hands of 
the municipality, and afterwards went to the general government. Since 
that time the city has managed the hospital, and provided the necessary 
funds for it. 

One of the theatres in the city (the Teatro Principal) owes its begin- 



THEATRES AND OPERA. 



317 



ning to the necessity for money to support the Hospital Eeal, which was 
in the hands of the Brothers of Charity dilring the seventeenth century. 
The first theatre was in the hospital building, and the players were hired 
by the Brothers. Tradition says that the noise made by the performers 
and audiences seriously disturbed the sick, while the management of a thea- 
tre by a religious order caused a great scandal among pious people. The 
Brothers argued that, no matter what the origin of the money was, it was 
used for a good purpose, and they continued to enjoy the revenues of the 
theatre until the hospital was discontinued. The theatre, and with it part 
of the hospital, was burned one night in 1722, after the performance of 
" The Kuin and Burning of Jerusalem." The common people regarded 
the conflagration as a sign of heavenly disapproval, but the Brothers re- 
built immediately. A few years later 
they rebuilt again ; and in 1752 they laid 
the foundation of the present theatre, and 
finished it in the following year. It has 
been changed so much since that time 
that very little now remains of the orig- 
inal edifice. 

The theatre is one of the institutions 
of Mexico, and liberally patronized. On 
this subject Frank wrote the follow- 
ing : 

" The Teatro Princijial is not what 
its name implies, as it is not the princi- 
pal theatre at all. It may have been so 
when it was the only one, but it certainly 
has not been of much account in late 
years. The most fashionable theatre is 
the Nacional. Italian and French opera 
are given there, and the place is open 
for one thing or another pretty much 
the whole year. It is the fashion to have 
the commencement exercises of the mil- 
itary and other colleges in the Teatro 

Nacional, and since we came here there has been a grand concert in the 
building. 

" We went to the opera one night. The performance was fairly good, 
but nothing remarkable, and we came away with the impression that the 
Mexicans go there more to see and be seen than to listen to the perform- 




'^^^^ 



A STAGE BRIGAND. 



318 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

ance. The ladies were in full evening costume, and the men seemed to 
be about equally divided between dress-coats and double-breasted ones. 
There are boxes on two balconies and also around part of the parquet. 
The prices for seats and boxes vary according to the attraction, and the 
house is said to be generally well filled. 

"Most of the men left their seats between the acts, some of them to 
smoke cigarettes in the lobby, and others to call on their lady friends in 
the boxes or send packages of dulces (sweetmeats) to them. The pretty 
women in the boxes seemed to enjoy being stared at, if we could judge 
by the way they smiled when opera-glasses were aimed at them. Many 
of the men paid no attention to the performance, but constantly eyed the 
beauties, and eyed them with their lorgnettes instead of their natural 
organs of sight. They came back just before the curtain rose on each act, 
and then each man stood up and made a survey of the horizon of boxes, 
reminding us of the quartermaster of a ship at sea looking for a sail. 
They tell us that the Mexican belles feel slighted if they are not thus 
stared at, and there is a keen rivalry among them as to who shall be the 
recipient of the greatest amount of attention. 

" We have been accustomed in other parts of the world," continued 
the youth, " to hear the voice of the prompter at the opera, but we were 
not prepared for it in an ordinary theatre where the performance was a 
play in dialogue and not a musical one. "We went one night to the 
Hidalgo Theatre to see and hear a Mexican play. The prompter pro- 
nounced every sentence before the actor did, and it was heard all through 
the house. It completely spoiled the play for us, and we left before it 
was over. What we liked a good deal better was the arrangement of the 
office, where there were five or six ticket-sellers seated in a row behind a 
grating, so that there was no delay in getting places. 

" They showed us a plan of the theatre in which the seats were marked 
by pegs in holes. We selected three places, paid our money, and then the. 
ticket-seller drew out the pegs and handed them to us. The pegs were 
numbered to correspond with the places, and we handed them to the usher 
as checks for our seats. We found that we could buy seats for a single 
act or for two acts, or three, just as we liked, on the same plan as in some 
of the cities of Europe. 

" In addition to the theatre and opera, the Mexicans inherit the Spanish 
love for the bull-fight. This form of sport has had its ups and downs in 
the capital. It was abolished in the federal district for some time, but 
was recently re-established or permitted, and now there are bull-rings at 
the northern end of the Paseo and in San Cosme. There is always 



MIMIC BULL-FIGHTS. 



319 



a large attendance, bnt it is cliieflj of the lower' classes of the ^Dopula- 
tion. 

" We have seen a bull-fight, but it was not a real one. It was given at 
a marionette theatre, and was said to be an excellent representation of the 
actual performance. The figures were about four inches high, and oper- 
ated by cords invisible to the audience. It was interesting and funny, and 
we had a good laugh while looking at it. During Lent this marionette 




TITOLI GARDEN, SAN COSME. 



theatre lias exhibitions called Zos Proeessiones, in which long processions 
of various church dignitaries and characters are drawn slowly along a stage 
or walk extending the whole length of the room. At the time we saw the 
miniature bull-fight the walk had been removed, and the stage was at the 
end of the hall. The audience was of the lower class of natives, and we 
kept a good watch over our pockets. 

" The real bull-fight was somethino; we did not want to see, and we re- 
fused several invitations to witness it. It is a brutal, degrading sport, 



320 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




TKASINGt THE BULL. 



from our point of consideration ; but probably the Spaniards and Mexicans 
would not agree with us. 

" Ml-. Brocklehurst, the author of ' Mexico To-day,' says the bull-fight 
here is almost as attractive as in Spain, and the sporting men of Mexico 

have their preferences in regard to 
the ganderias, the farms on which 
bulls are raised, just as the same class 
in England have their favorite stables 
for horses. The bulls are of proper 
age for fighting at from three to five 
years ; they are reared as carefully 
as race-horses in other countries, and 
brought to the plaza during the night 
before the day on which they are to do battle. 

" On their arrival they are shut in a dark pen, and when wanted for 
the fight they are driven from this pen, one by one, to the to7'il, which 
opens into the arena. The ring is a 
great amphitheatre, without a roof, 
and the seats al sol (on the sunny 
side) are only half the price of those 
al sombre (on the shady side). To 
the discredit of the people be it said, 
the seats are generally well filled to 
witness this cruel sport, and the great 
mass of the people seem to be more 

interested in it than in the choice of a President or the opening of a 
new railway. 

" The performance begins with a procession of the fighters, and then 
the master of ceremonies asks the judge for the key of the toril, which is 

thrown to him. Tie then goes to the 
toril and lets in the bull, the band and 
all other persons not concerned in the 
fight having judiciously retired from 
the ring. 

" The pioadores, or mounted men, 

are on miserable horses, whose eyes are 

bandaged so that they cannot see the 

bull ; as the animal enters he looks 

around in astonishment at the horses and their riders, at the capeadores, 

with their scarlet cloaks to attract the bull's attention, and at the han- 




PICADORES. 




THE MATADOR S TRIUMPH. 



INCIDENTS OF A BULL-FIGHT. 



321 



derilleros, whose duty it is to stick darts in the animal to enrage him. 
Sometimes the darts have fire-crackers attached in addition to the long 
ribbons with which they are always ornamented. 

" The most cruel part of the performance, and one which generally 
sickens the foreign spectator, is when the poor, broken-down, and blind- 
folded horses are gored by the maddened animal which has been brought 
into the ring only to be killed. The most interesting part of it is when, 
after killing several horses, and being worried for half an hour by his tor- 
mentors, the bull is turned over to the matador, who, after several feints 
and skilfully avoiding the charges of the animal, plants his sword up to 







THE FINAL BLOW. 



the hilt between the bull's shoulders. The matador is a hero who is wor- 
shipped by the populace as much as is the champion base-ball player in 
the United States, or the jockey in England who wins the Derby. Once 
in a while a matador is killed by his four-footed adversary ; an occurrence 
of this kind adds interest to the sport, though it may plunge the whole 
country into grief. 

"Next to the matador, the men who run the greatest risk are the pica- 
dores, the fellows who fight on horseback. They are protected by leather 
armor, which impedes their movements, and when a horse is thrown down 
by the bull they often fall with him, and are unable to extricate them- 
selves. When this occurs, the capeadores, who are also called chidos, en- 
deavor to draw away the bull's attention by waving their cloaks in front 
of him ; the ruse generally succeeds, and the unfortunate picador is as- 
21 



322 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO, 



sisted out of his dangerous 
position as quickly as pos- 
sible. Sometimes, the bull 
will not be diverted from 
his attack on horse and 
rider, and it is in such 
cases that the picador may- 
be gored, perhaps to death. 





SCENES AT A BULLFIGHT. 



If he is hurt but not killed, the spectators show 
their appreciation of his bravery by tossing silver 
dollars into the ring ; and a w^ounded pica- 
dor has been known to gather up a hatful 
of these welcome coins before retiring. 

" A priest is always waiting in a room 

near the toril, in order to offer the last 

sacrament to any luckless combatant who 

may be fatally injured. "When a bull is 

killed his body is dragged off by a team 

of richly ornamented mules ; these mules form 

part of the procession that opens the 

performance, but they never seem 

to manifest any special pride in 

their work. 

"We are told that the specta- 
tors are often wild with excitement 
over the incidents of a bull-figlit ; 
they smash the furniture and rail- 
ings, and have been knowii to 
wreck a considerable portion of 
the wood-work of the ring in their 
fury. Sombreros by the dozen, of 
all kinds and values, are thrown 
into the arena, and a gentleman 
tells us he has seen hundreds of 



MEXICAN AMUSEMENTS IN GENEEAL. 



323 



spectators leaving the place bareheaded at the end of an exciting day, 
From four to six bulls are killed at a performance — four being the usual 
number — and ten or twelve horses. 

" That will do for the national sport of Mexico," concluded the youth ; 
" it is only given because a description of the country would be incom- 
plete without i't. Doctor Bronson says that bull-fighting was originally 




A BULL-RING OF THE HIGHEST CLASS. 



a compromise with the Roman custom of gladiatorial combats, and fur- 
nished a substitute that met the desire of the populace to witness blood- 
shed. It was brought to Mexico by the Spaniards, partly as a reminis- 
cence of their home country, and partly to take the place of the human 
sacrifices of the Aztecs. It has become a part of the life of the people, 
and the government that endeavors to suppress it would run the risk of 
being overturned." 

From theatres and bull-fights the conversation naturally turned to the 
other amusements of the Mexicans. That the people are fond of gam- 
bling the youths had already learned, also that one of their sports was 
cock-fighting. Game-cocks are carefully trained for the work they are 



324 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



expected to perform, and fights between tliem are of frequent occurrence. 
A traveller in Mexico tells how he once visited a school where each of 
the pupils had a game-cock, which he carried constantly with him, and 
during school hours the birds were supposed to be tied up so that they 
could not get at each other. The noonday recess was generally devoted 
to a battle between two of the feathered champions, and' sometimes the 
teacher, who possessed several game-birds, joined in the sport with his 
pupils. 

Cockpits are more numerous than bull-rings, for the reason that their 
construction is inexpensive. Only a few posts and a thatched roof are 
necessarv. The birds are placed in the centre of a ring, and the excited 




A SCHOOL ON THE OT.P MODEL 



spectators crowd as closely as possible to the ropes in order to witness 
the sport. Pretty nearly all the money in their possession changes hands 
during or at the end of the performance, and sometimes the peons are so 
warmed up to the business that they wager their hats, coats, and nearly 
all their garments, together with everything else they possess. 

The religious observances of the country are closely mixed up with 
amusements, as the festivities established by the Church are almost inva- 
riably combined with entertainments in greater or less variety. In this 
respect they have their counterpart in the Christmas festivities of most 
Protestant countries. 



GAME OF "POSADA." 



325 



" Tliey can't have Cliristmas here as we do," Frank remarked to Fred, 
while they were discussing the subject. 

" Wh}^ so ?" Fred asked. 

'• Because," was the reply, " they have no chimneys, and consequently 
no way for Santa Claus to get 
into the house after the time- 
honored fashion." 

" That's so," answered 
Fred ; " but you may be sure 
they have their fun, and quite 
as much as we do. We'll look 
into that subject, and find out 
about it." 

Fred investigated, and here 
is the result of his inquiries : 

" The Mexicans have a 
longer Christmas than we do,, 
as it begins on the ITth of 
December, and lasts until New 
Year's Day. During their 
Christmas they have an amuse- 
ment called the ■posada, or inn ; 
it is based upon occurrences of 
the time when Csesar Augus- 
tus ordered the whole world 
to be taxed, and Joseph and 
Mary came to Judea from Gal- 
ilee to be enrolled. Bethle- 
hem was so filled with stran- 
gers that they wandered from 
inn to inn for nine days with- 
out finding accommodations, 
and then sought shelter in the 
stable in which Christ was 
born. 

" In commemoration of the 
nine days of wandering, the figure of joseph (peocessiox of the posada). 

.Mexican posadas last nine 

days. In many houses processions are formed, and the people of a fam- 
ily join in it, carrying tapers and singing litanies ; figures of Joseph and 




326 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

Mary are carried in front of each procession, and every door that is passed 
on tlie round is knocked upon in the effort to obtain shelter. The sound 
of the litanies is to be heard all over the city; court-yards and windows 
are hung witli numerous lanterns, and all the public places are richly 
ornamented, and abound with pleasure-seekers. 

" The principal sport of the posada is breaking the pinate, an earthen 
jar filled with dulces. The jar is richly decorated on the outside, and orna- 
mented with ribbons of paper. The pinates are made in the shape of all 
known and many unknown birds and beasts, and also in the shape of dolls, 
some of them being of great size. Peddlers go about the streets with these 
things suspended from a pole, and the number sold at Christmas-time is 
very large. 

" When the ceremonial procession is over the party goes to the patio, 
or to a large room of the house, and there the fun begins. A pinate is 
suspended from the ceiling, or from a cord stretched across the patio, and 
then one of the party, blindfolded and armed with a stick, sets about 
breaking the pinate ; sometimes half a dozen are blindfolded at once, and 
then the fun is lively. When the pinate is broken the dulces fall to the 
floor, and everybody scrambles for them. Altogether, the game reminds 
us of blind-man's-buff and some of our other home sports. 

" A good many people omit the religious part of the posada and come 
at once to the jug-breaking. In wealthy families posadas often cost many 
hundreds or even thousands of dollars ; the ladies receive handsome and 
valuable presents, and the broken pinates have been known to yield 
showers of rings and gold coins, instead of the regulation sweetmeats. 
The affair concludes with a grand dance, and the participants do not reach 
home until a very late, or early, hour. 

"All through the Christmas and New-year festivities there are grand 
balls, dinners, theatre parties, and the like; everybody indulges in fes- 
tivity according to his means, and not infrequently beyond them ; and 
when the affair is over, and the realities of life come again, the tradesmen 
Avho seek to collect their bills make the time doubly serious. In some 
parts of the country the pastorela^ or pastoral, takes the place of the 
posada ; the amusements are pretty much the same, the principal differ- 
ence being tliat another incident of the nativity is taken as the ground- 
work of the ceremonial. 

" Another popular festival is on the last day of Holy Week, which is 
devoted to the death of Judas. Efiigies of Judas abound everywhere ; 
they are hung on trees and from windows, on lamp-posts, balconies — in 
fact, everywhere they can be made to hang. You see them on the front 



"KILLING JUDAS." 



327 




THE RAILWAY JUDAS. 



of every locomotive on tliat day, 
and on many another vehicle ; in 
fact, it would be easier to say where 
Judas is not than where he is. The 

figures are of all dimensions, but usually of life size. They are filled with 
fireworks of various sorts, so that they explode when a match is touched 
to them. If from any cause they do not explode, they are torn in pieces 
when they fall to the ground. In thus destroying them the people in- 
dicate their detestation of the betrayer of his Master. Not infrequently 
the figures that are hung from private houses have thirty silver dollars 
pasted upon them, as a reminder of the thirty pieces of silver which were 
the traitor's price. Of course tiiere is a lively scramble for these coins 
when the Judas falls to the ground." 



328 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



CHAPTER XXL 

EXCURSION TO TULA.— AN ANCIENT CITY OF THE TOLTECS.— CHURCH OF THE 
TIME OF CORTEZ.— MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE TOLTECS.— TOLTEC KINGS, 
COURTS, AND KNIGHTHOOD.— RUINS OF THE TEMPLE AND PALACE.— JOURNEY 
TO MORELOS. — INTEROCEANIC RAILWAY. — MORELOS AND HIS SERVICES TO 
MEXICO.— CUAUTLA AND ITS ATTRACTIONS.— TERRIBLE RAILWAY ACCIDENT.— 
DOWN THE SOUTHERN SLOPE. — IN TIERRA CALIENTE. — VISITING A SUGAR 
ESTATE.— TO YAUTEPEC AND CUERNAVACA.— RIDE OVER THE MOUNTAINS.— 
SITUATION OF CUERNAVACA.— OLD CHURCH AND PALACE OF CORTEZ.— A FORT- 
UNATE FRENCHMAN.— ROMANTIC INCIDENT IN THE CAPTURE OF CUERNAVACA. 

ONE of the volumes in which our young friends were interested 
during their stay in Mexico was " The Ancient Cities of the New 
World," by M. Charnay. The perusal of this book led them to wish to 
visit Tula, which is famous for having been a city of the Toltecs, and a 
flourishing place at the time of the Conquest. 

Leaving the city of Mexico at half-past seven o'clock one morning by 
the Central Railway, they reached Tula at 9.40 a.m. ; the distance is about 
fifty miles, and the route is the same as already described, through the 
Nochistongo cut. The returning train at 4.40 p.m. brought them back 
to the city at seven o'clock, and the trio nnanimously voted that they had 
passed a most agreeable and instructive day. The heads of the 3'ouths 
were filled with archaeology, and they felt themselves almost competent 
to write a history of the Toltecs and their migrations, in spite of the ob- 
scurity of many of the traditions about this remarkable people. 

Instead of a history, they acted upon Doctor Bronson's suggestion, and 
contented themselves with an account of what they had seen. Math a few 
supplementary notes by way of explanation. From this account we will 
make a few selections. 

" Tula now has a population of less tlian 2000," said Frank in his note- 
book ; " but according to the histories, it was a rival of Tenochtitlan, the 
ancient name of the city of Mexico, at the time of the Conquest. The 
inhabitants were firm supporters of Cortez, and among the first people 
to accept the new religion and become his allies. Its ancient name was 
Tollan, which is said to mean ' the place of reeds,' and also ' the place of 
many people.' Cortez built a church there very soon after he conquered 



OLD CHURCH AT TULA. 



320 



the place. There is a cliurcli now standing wliicli was begun in 1553 and 
completed eight years later. 

" It is one of the best built churches in Mexico ; at any rate, one of 
the best that we have seen. Doctor Bronson thought it must have been 
intended as a fortress as well as a church, as the walls in some places are 
seven feet thick, and built in the most substantial manner. And it wasn't 
a small building either, as it is 192 feet long by 41 wide. The body of the 




warrior's profile, found at tula. 



church is more than 80 feet high, and it has a tower whose top is 125 
feet from the ground. The architects that came with Cortez evidently 
understood how to erect substantial buildings. 

"Exactly how many inhabitants there were in Tula when Cortez came 
nobody seems to know ; but it is certain, from the extent of the ruins, that 
the city covered a wide area. There is a small and not particularly clean 
river that winds through a plain around the base of Mount Coatepetl, and 



530 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




CHURCH AND PART OF PLAZA AT TULA. 



the city stretched over this plain and was dominated by the mountain. 
Great quantities of sculpture have been found here in plougliing the fields 
or clearing the bed of the river, and explorers and antiquarians have done 
a great deal of work with profitable results. Some of the 'finds' have 
been taken to the museum in Mexico, some have gone out of tlie country, 
and a good many large pillars and pieces of statues remain in Tula to in- 
terest and instruct the visitor. 

"According to the historians, the Toltecs founded Tula, or Tollan. in 



A RULER OF THE OLDEN TIME. 



331 




TOLTEC KING AND HIS THRONK. 



332 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



the year 648. We have told elsewliere how the discovery of pulque 
brought about the ruin, of the nation, but whether this is really so or not 
the historians cannot say positively. At any i-ate, the ruins of Tula are 
of great antiquity, and as we w^alked and stood among them we tried to 
make a mental picture of what was to be seen here a thousand years ago. 










RUINS OF A TOLTEC PALACE. 



"We imagined that we saw a long line of soldiers, armed with spears, 
light javelins, bows and arrows, and also with clubs studded with copper 
or silver nails. They were protected by cotton tunics thickly quilted, 
that must have been very warm when the wearers were marching, but 
evidently made an excellent armor. They had leggings of the same mate- 
rial, and they had wadded capes over their shoulders, but kept their arms 
bare for greater facility in handling their weapons. We pictured their 
king wrapped in a thick mantle knotted across his breast, with his hands 
bare, and his feet protected by sandals. These sandals were held in place 
by a thong passing between the first and second toes — exactly after the 
style of the foot-gear worn by the Japanese at the present time. His head 



KNIGHTHOOD AMONG THE TOLTECS. 



333 



was covered with a conical cap resembling that of the Persians, and his 
ears were ornamented with heavy rings that glistened throngli his long 
hair. 

" At one side of the field where the soldiers are standing in battle-arraj 
we see some buildings whicli they tell us are storehouses where grain is 
laid away in times of abundance as a provision against a period of famine. 
This was a custom of the Toltecs, and on several occasions saved them 
from great suffering. 

" One building which we cannot clearly make out is a tennis-court, so 
M. Charnay says, and if we have any doubt about it now we can be con- 
vinced, as one of the tennis-rings is still in place. Then there is a temple 
on the top of a hill, and the procession that is going towards the temple is 
in honor of a warrior who is receiving the honor of knighthood. 

" You will be interested in learning that they had a regular system of 
knighthood here centuries before Columbus discovered America. When 




THE PYRAMID OP THE SUN AT TULA. 



334 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

a candidate was to be presented the knights accompanied liini to the tem- 
ple in a solemn procession. At the temple a priest pierced the cartilage 
of his nose with an eagle's claw, and then twigs were inserted in the wound 
to keep the flesh from uniting as the sore healed. He was clad in a coarse 
tunic, and then they painted him black all over, gave him one tortilla and 
a little water once a day to save him from starvation, and compelled him 
to lie on a mat on the cold ground. They allowed him to sleep only a few 
minutes at a time, and waked him by a prod with a thorn. Several times 
a day they sat down and feasted in front of him, called him every mean 
name their language contained, and heaped all sorts of insults upon him. 
They kept this up for sixty days ; if he lost his temper at any time and 
' talked back ' at their insults, or asked for any of their food, the ceremony 
stopped and he wasn't made a knight. 

" If he held out bravely and patiently to the end of the sixty days, he 
was then taken to the Temple again, and the whole order of the knights 
received him with high honors. His mean garments were removed from 
him by the oldest knight in the assemblage, and he was decorated with 
the insignia of the order and dressed in fine clothes. The use of the hole 
in his nose was now apparent, as the jewel that indicated his rank was 
hung there. The Apache and other south-western Indians occupy the 
country dwelt in by the Toltecs before their migration to Mexico. These 
Indians wear ornaments in their noses, and are supposed to have derived 
the custom from the ancient inhabitants. 

" So much for the past. Let us see what there is here now. Here are 
the ruins of the Temple of tlie Sun, where the people worshipped that 
great luminary ; they made offerings of fruits and flowers, and sometimes 
of birds, and, unlike the Aztecs, they did not indulge in human sacrifices. 
The temple is now only a heap of stones partly overgrown with trees, and 
it is said that a great deal of material was taken from it for building the 
houses of the Tula of to-day. 

" We went from the temple to the ruins of the palace. These ruins 
were unearthed by M. Charnay, and cover a considerable area of ground. 
The guide who accompanied us was the same that aided the author of 
'Ancient Cities of the New World,' and he pointed out the different rooms 
in the palace and their probable uses. One room, he said, was supposed to 
have been devoted to a sort of ' Happy Family ' of wild and domestic ani- 
mals, as it was the fashion of those times for every palace to have a men- 
agerie attached to it. Then they had coops and cages for turkeys, ducks, 
and other fowls destined for the table, yards for goats and other domestic 
quadrupeds, tanks for fish, and chambers for reptiles and birds of prey. 



A TOLTP;C PALACE. 



335 



Servants' quarters were arranged very much as in modern palaces ; and 
altogether the Toltec kings had a good deal of comfort about their resi- 
dences. 

" In the plaza we saw some broken columns, which appear to have been 
wrought with a great deal of skill and carefully mortised together. There 
was also the lower portion of a caryatid. Fred made a sketch of it with 
the guide standing at one side, so that you can see the proportions of the 
figure. Only the legs and feet remain, and they are more than seven feet 
high. Taking this height for a calculation, the head of the complete 
figure before it was broken niust have been nearly twenty feet from the 
ground. 

" The Toltecs built their houses of uncut stone laid in mud, and cov- 
ered with hard cement ; this cement seems to have been of an excellent 
composition, as it is well preserved in spite of the centuries that have 




PARTS OF A COLCUN, TULA. 



elapsed since the city was built. The floors are levelled with the same 
cement, and some of them are smooth enough for skating-rinks. The 
palace that we visited contains thirty or fort}^ rooms, and there is a smaller 
palace in another part of the town which we did not see. One of the Tol- 
tec stone basins is used as a baptismal font for the church, and the ruins 
supplied much of the material of which the walls are composed. 

"We dined fairly well at the Hotel de Diligencias, having taken the 
precaution to order the dinner as soon as we arrived. We allowed our- 
selves scant time for the meal, as we wished to utilize our stay as much as 
possible in seeing the sights of Tula. If we ever turn excavators of ruins, 
we will come to Tula and see what can be found. Our interest is some- 
what stimulated by the story that an Indian boy once found a jar here 
containing 500 gold coins ; he was ignorant of their value, and sold the 
entire lot for a few coppers. If you hear of our doing anything of this 
sort, please let us know." 



336 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN xMEXICO. 



On their return to the city Doctor Bronson found at tlie hotel a letter 
which contained an invitation to visit a sugar plantation in the State of 
Morelos ; the invitation included the youths, and was accejDted at once. 




TOLTEC CARYATID, TULA. 



Immediate acceptance was necessary, as the proprietor of the estate was to 
leave the city on the following morning, and wished the visitors to accom- 
pany him, and on their part they desired the pleasure and advantage of 
liis company on the road. 

The party took the morning train on the Interoceanic Railway, the 
line by which they went to Aniecameca on their excursion to Popocate- 



THE PATRIOT MOEELOS. 



337 



petl. Their destination was Cuautla (pronounced Kwat-la) or Cuautla- 
Morelos, as it is officially designated. 

" It was named in honor of the patriot Morelos," said Senor Domingo, 
the gentleman whose sugar estate our friends were going to visit. 

" I have seen his name in the list of Mexicans who have made their 
names famous," replied Fred, " and must refresh my memory concerning 
him." 

" I will save you the trouble of consulting the histories," the gentle- 
man answered, " by giving you a brief sketch of his life." 

The youths bowed their acknowledgments of his courtesy as Senor 
Domingo continued : 

" You doubtless know about the insurrection led by the priest Hidalgo, 
in 1810, which was the beginning of the War for Independence. Well, 




NATIVE HUT ON A SUGAR ESTATE. 



Morelos was one of the curates under Hidalgo, and when the insurrection 
began he joined in it, and raised a force of patriots to oppose the Span- 
iards and drive them from the country. He began with five negro slaves 
as the nucleus of his army, and soon had a following of several thousands. 
22 



338 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IX MEXICO. 



He was successful at first, and his defence of Cuautla was one of the most 
heroic affairs known in Mexican history. 

" Morelos had taken his position in the town, and was attacked by the 
Spanish general Calleja, in February, 1812. He repulsed the attack, and 
then the Spaniards laid siege to the place. For more than two months 

the siege was kept up ; provi- 
sions grew very scarce and the 
besieged were near the point of 
starvation. Kats sold for one 
dollar each, and a cat was worth 
five or six dollars. Lizards be- 
came valuable, and a fair -sized 
one was worth two dollars, and 
could not be readily obtained at 
that price." 

" Was the patriot army forced 
to surrender?" Frank asked. 

"ITo," was the reply, "it held 
out for sixty-two days, and then 
Morelos managed on a dark and 
rainy night to evacuate the place 
and retreat. He fought several 
other battles, but was finally capt- 
ured. He was tried for treason, 
and condemned to death, and it is notable that his conviction was one of 
the last acts of the Inquisition in Mexico. Morelos was shot in December, 
1815 ; his memory is preserved in the name of the State we are about to 
visit, and also in that of his native city, Yalladolid, which is now called 
Morelia." 

" To be shot for treason seems to be the fate of the majority of Mexi- 
can leaders," one of the youths remarked. 

"Yes," was the reply. "An intimate friend of Morelos, and one of 
his ablest officers, was the priest Matamoras. He was captured and shot 
by Iturbide, in 1814, and in revenge for his execution Morelos is said to 
have butchered 200 Spanish prisoners. And Iturbide, as you know, was 
disposed of in the same way, when he set foot on Mexican soil after his 
banishment. It may seem strange to you to see the portraits of Iturbide, 
Morelos, and Matamoras side by side in the public hall at Cuautla, and to 
know we revere them all as heroes ; but it shows you the ups and downs 
of Mexican history better than anything else I know of." 




HENEQUIN PLANT. 



A FRIGHTFUL ACCIDENT. 



339 



The conversation just related occurred as tlie train was wending its 
way from Mexico to Amecameca. Beyond that town there were numer- 
ous curves in the railway line, and the youths were interested in studying 
the rapidly changing panorama as the train wound among the mountains 
in its descent from Ozumba to Cuautla. Before the ride was ended they 
declared that they had nowhere seen a more crooked railway, and ex- 
pressed unfeigned admiration for the engineer that built it. 

But their admiration was checked when Senor Domingo pointed out 
the scene of one of the most terribly fatal accidents known in the history 
of railway management. 

" This is the place," said he, as they reached the deep barranca of Mal- 
pais. " The railway was opened on the 18th of June, 1881, and there was 
an excursion from the city, with a grand banquet at Cuautla. President 
Diaz and nearly all the notable men of Mexico were on the excursion 
and banqueting party ; in fact there was hardly any government left in 




FIGHT BETWEEN REGULARS AND INSURGENTS. 



the capital on that day. The banquet was given in an old convent, which 
had been converted into a railway -station, and a very good station it 
makes. 

" There was a regiment of soldiers at Cuautla at the time, and just six 
days after the excursion and the opening of the line it was ordered to the 



340 



THE BOY TRAVELLEES IN MEXICO. 



city. The soldiers were placed on platform cars, and several other cars 
loaded with barrels of aguardiente were attached to the train. 

" It was dusk when the train started, and the night came on very 
dark and rainy. The soldiers broke open some of the barrels of the fiery 
liquid, and drank heavily to keep out the effects of the rain. The foun- 
dations of the bridge at this barranca had been badly built, and were 




RAILWAY CROSSING A BARRANCA. 



made unsafe by a flood ; when the train came along, the bridge gave way 
and the cars were thrown into the abyss. The barrels of aguardiente 
took fire, the cartridges in the belts of the soldiers exploded, the men who 
were not killed outright or stunned by the fall were crazy with drink 
and excitement, and shot and stabbed each other ; many were swept away 
by the torrent, and altogether the accident was the most horrible ever 
known upon a railway, so far as I have read or heard. More than three 
hundred lives were lost, and many persons think the real number was not 
much below five hundred." 

Frank and Fred shuddered as they looked from the windows of the 



AN INDUSTRY OF CUAUTLA. 



341 




A PRODUCT OF CUAUTLA. 



342 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



v.-^/ 









car into the deep barranca, where the stream was rusliing along in its 
wild fury. The fallen train, inky darkness, the tropical storm, men 
crazed with drunkenness, burning aguardiente, exploding cartridges, 

knives, bayonets, and loaded rifles 
combined to make a picture terrible 
to contemplate. 

The change from the Yalley of 
Mexico to the warm country south 
of the encircling mountains is very 
perceptible in the distance between 
Ozumba and Cuautla, and more so 
where the line continues to Yautepec, 
fifteen miles farther on. Cuautla is 
eighty-five miles from Mexico City, 
and before the railway was opened it 
was very difficult of access. 

The railway, as before stated, is 
entirely Mexican in character ; it is a 
narrow-gauge line, and owes its exist- 
ence to the owners of the sugar es- 
tates in the region of which Cuautla 
and Yautepec are the commercial cen- 
tres. Through the political influence 
of these men a Government conces- 
sion and subsidy were obtained, with 
extra subventions for speedy constructions. To the insecure character of 
the work, owing to the speed with which the line was built, may be at- 
tributed the accident at the Malpais barranca. 

Cuautla has about 12,000 inhabitants, and is 3500 feet above the level 
of the sea; the rapidity of the descent of the railway will be realized 
when it is remembered that Amecameca is nearly 5000 feet higher up in 
the air, and less than fifty miles away. That the region is tropical a 
glance from the car windows as the station is approached will readily 
show. 

Cuautla contains a very good and venerable church, and a well-built 
town-hall; the alameda is prett}^, and when these have been seen the 
stranger has practically finished with the place. Senor Domingo did not 
allow our friends an opportunity to inspect the town, as his carriage was 
waiting at the station and they were off in a few minutes. They did not 
see the sights of Cuautla until their return. 




TRAYELLERS RESTING. 



THE STATE OF MORELOS. 



343 




OVER THE HILLS. 



Tliey had breakfasted lightly be- 
fore starting in the morning, and 
substantially at Oziimba ; it was half- 
past three in the afternoon when 
they ended their railway ride, and 
the drive to the sugar estate occu- 
pied fully two hours. The drive 
was along roads lined with tropical 
trees and plants, and among planta- 
tions of bananas, sugar-cane, or- 
anges, and other products of the 
warm region. The air was dense 
and hot, and by no means an agree- 
able change from the pure atmos- 
phere of the Yalley of Mexico. 

Sugar is the chief product of the 
State of Morelos, the annual yield 
being over 60,000,000 pounds, or 
30,000 tons. ISText to sugar comes 

corn, the value of the corn product being nearly two-thirds as much as that 
of the sugar. Coffee, rice, wheat, and fruits are the remaining yields of the 
soil ; and there are several silver-mines in Morelos, but they are not of 
great repute. The story is that they swallow up a great deal more than 

they produce, and are only worked when a cap- 
italist happens along who has a few hundreds of 
thousands he is willing to part with. 

A late and bountiful dinner was served at the 
plantation, and after a pleasant evening with the 
family of their host the strangers retired to rest. 
They were out early the next morning, ready for 
an investigation of the sugar-making process as it 
is conducted in Mexico. 

Here is what Fred wrote on the subject : 

" We have seen sugar-making in several parts 

of the world, so that there is nothing particularly 

new to us here. They have the most improved 

machinery for crushing, boiling, and refining, and 

there is a portable railway for transporting the 

sugar-cane to the mills. This railway is shifted from one part of the 

estate to another as it is wanted, and the saving of horse or other quadru- 




A SCORPION OF CUERNATACA. 



344 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




A CHURCH GOING TO DECAY. 



m 



pedal power is very great. The 
peons appear to be well fed 
and happy; but it must be remembered 
that it takes very little to support this 
class of the population. Kearly all the 
sugar consumed in Central Mexico is 
grown in the State of Morelos and the tropical region which immediately 
borders it. It is said that the business is less profitable now than in for- 
mer times, owing to the low price of sugar. 

" The process of making sugar has been described so often that it 
would be superfluous to give it a place here. Some of the estates date 
from the time of Cortez, and we were shown a building that was erected 
about 1540, if the tradition concerning it is correct. Of course the proc- 
esses for obtaining sugar from the cane have greatly improved since that 
time, and the sugar -makers of three hundred years ago would be very 
much astonished if they could wake up and see what is going on here 
now." 

Doctor Bronson and his nephews spent two or three days around 



THE VALLEY OF CUERNxiVACA. 



345 



Cnautla, and tlien continued on to Yaiitepee, where they took horses for 
a five hours' ride to Cuernavaca. They took the advice of Seiior Domingo, 
and spent the night at Yautepec, so as to make the horseback journey in 
the early hours of the day, and thus escape the heat of noon. 

" We had a rough ride," said Frank, " but were amply repaid for it, 
not only by the scenery along the way but by the quaint and picturesque 
position of Cuernavaca. It has a commanding site on a promontory pro- 
jecting into the Yalley of Cuernavaca, several hundred feet above it. The 
valley is exceedingly fertile, and so is the ground on which the town, with 
its twelve or fourteen thousand inhabitants, is located. There was a town 
here when Cortez came to Mexico, and it was captured and converted to 
Christianity before the siege of Tenochtitlan was begun. 

" There is a wonderful supply of tropical fruits, and also, we regret to 
say, of tropical insects, the scorpion having a prominent place among them. 




MEXICAN HOUSE WITH TILED KOOP. 



The widest street is the Calle Nacional, and the most interesting buildings 
are the church and the palace of Cortez. The conqueror had a grant of 
land from the King, which included the Yalley of Cuernavaca ; he estab- 
lished his private residence here, and had a large estate, where he intro- 
duced the cultivation of the sugar-cane and other useful growths of the 
hot lands. His palace is now used as the public building of the State of 
Morelos, which has its capital here ; it has been changed a good deal since 



346 THE BOY TEAVELLEES IN MEXICO. 

liis time, and we had some doubt as to the veracity of the guide, who 
pointed out the different rooms and told tlie uses which the great warrior 
made of them. 

" The church is well worth seeing, and according to the historians it 
was founded in 1529, along with a convent of the order of San Francisco. 
There is another church, which was built by a Frenchman who came to 
Mexico a poor boy and was so successful in mining enterprises that he 
accumulated a fortune of $40,000,000. He spent a million dollars in build- 
ing the church, and another million in making a garden which is one of 
the finest in Mexico, though it is far from being what it was in its best 
days. We went through it and were fairly enraptured with what it con- 
tains. The Mdiole flora of the tropics seem to have been gathered in this 
garden, and not only that of the tropics, but also of a large part of the 
temperate zone. 

" This fortunate Frenchman was named Joseph de la Borde, which is 
changed in Spanish into Jose de la Borda. Lest you might think of com- 
ing here to make his acquaintance, I will add that he was born in the year 
lYOO, and therefore isn't around very much just now. 

" Cuernavaca means ' cow's horn,' but we looked in vain for something 
to remind us of the weapon of the favorite animal of the farm-yard. It 
was explained to us that the word is a corruption of Quauhnahuac, which 
means ' where the eagle stops.' This was a better definition, as the site of 
Cuernavaca is one which an intelligent eagle might select for building his 
nest, provided there were no human beings around to molest him. The 
ill-fated Maximilian followed the supposed example of the eagle, as he 
was fond of coming here ; it was his favorite dwelling-place whenever he 
could snatch a few days from the cares of state. Most of the houses are 
roofed with red tiles, which make a fine contrast with the foliage of the 
tropical and semi-tropical trees. 

"We visited the springs of Guadalupe which supply the town with 
water, and found some charming scenery among the neighboring hills. 
Cuernavaca lies between two barrancas, with very steep sides, and thereby, 
or therein, hangs a bit of history. The barrancas offer an excellent protec- 
tion against assault, and when the army of Cortez came here there seemed 
to be no point of access. You must remember that Cortez had no Krupp 
or Armstrong cannon with which he could lie off at his ease to batter the 
town to pieces and care nothing for the intervening chasms. 

" The Spaniards were at bay for some time, till at last some of the 
soldiers found a place where two trees had fallen across the barranca, and 
made a perilous but possible bridge. Over this passage-way they crept, 



CAPTUKING A STKONGHOLD. 



347 



one by one, some of tliem growing dizzy and falling off, to be dashed to 
death on the rocks below. Silently they effected the transit, formed their 
ranks on the other side, and then, with the blare of trumpets and the fire 
of musketry, they dashed forward and captured the town. How it must 
have astonished the people when the position they had considered im- 
pregnable was thus captured by the white men from beyond the sea !" 






in - 



i* ' \ 



Hh 










CLIMBING THE HEIGHTS. 



348 



THE BOY TRAVELLEES IN MEXICO. 



CHAPTER XXII. 

OVERLAND TO ACAPULCO.— SCENES OF LONG AGO.— PRESENT MODE OF TRAVEL.— 
TEN DAYS ON HORSEBACK.— WAY-SIDE ACCOMMODATIONS.— ACAPULCO'S HAR- 
BOR.— RETURN TO THE CAPITAL.— EXCURSION TO GUADALAJARA.— DOCTOR 
BRONSON LEFT BEHIND.— OLD BRIDGES AND THEIR HISTORY.— BATTLE BE- 
TWEEN HIDALGO AND THE SPANIARDS.— STORIES ABOUT BRIGANDS.— SLAUGH- 
TER BY PRIVATE ENTERPRISE.— HOW SENOR PEREZ SECURED PEACE.— AT- 
TRACTIONS OF GUADALAJARA.— THE CATHEDRAL AND OTHER CHURCHES.— THE 
GREAT HOSPICIO.— WHAT THE EARTHQUAKE DID.— PUBLIC SCHOOLS.— A DAY 
ON A CATTLE HACIENDA.— A RODEO.— RETURN TO THE CAPITAL. 

AT Cuernavaca onr friends learned that they were on the road from 
-^-^ Yera Cruz and Mexico to Acapulco, and the youths greatly wished 
to continue to the Pacific Ocean. It is the old route of commerce be- 
tween Spain and Asia, and was travelled for hundreds of years by long 
trains of pack-mules laden with the products ^of the Orient on their way 

to Europe, and with those of Mex- 

__ ico and Europe destined for Asia. It 

seems incredible that such a route 

should have been so long maintained 

across the continent, with no track 

for wheeled vehicles, over mountains 

and through deep gorges, with the 

dangers of robbers, pestilence, and 

the hundred accidents that are liable 

to occur in such a country and such 

a time ; but so it was. Over this 

route were carried the cargoes of 

many richly freighted galleons ; along 

these dangerous path- ways thousands 

of soldiers marched to glory or the grave, and hundreds if not thousands 

of civilians went in search of new lands from which they could gather the 

wealth they coveted. 

It is eighty leagues, or 24:0 miles, from Cuernavaca to Acapulco, the 
port which once enjoyed a profitable commerce but is to-day of com- 
paratively little moment. Spasmodic efforts have been made at different 




A WAT-SIDE SHRINE. 



THE EOAD TO ACAPULCO. 



349 



times for the construction of a wagon-road, but they have never been car- 
ried far. There is a wagon-road between Cuernavaca and Mexico City, 
a distance of about forty-five miles, and over this a diligence runs three 
times a week each way, and wagons laden with merchandise pass in fair 
number. But the business of the route is less than it was two hundred 
years ago ; the Mexicans hope for a revival when the railway is completed 
from Yera Cruz to Acapulco, and a line of steamers between Acapulco 
and China is under consideration. 

Doctor Bronson's plans did not include the overland journey to Aca- 
pulco, and by way of consolation the youths determined to write a de- 
scription of the route from what they could learn from others. By con- 
sulting those who had made the journey, and by references to some of the 
volumes in their possession, they composed the following : 

" There is no regular system of hiring horses and baggage-mules for 
the journey, and the traveller must make his bargain with an arriero. A 
horse to carry himself, and a mule for the baggage, will cost about forty 
dollars, twenty for each animal ; if there are several persons in a party the 




ON THE ROAD TO ACAPULCO. 



350 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



price can be reduced somewhat. It should be carefully stipulated that the 
arriero pay his own expenses and those of his animals, or the traveller will 
find himself mulcted for a considerable sum as he goes along. The arriero 
will want to be paid in advance, a demand that should be strenuously re- 
fused ; the affair can be compromised by paying half down, and the other 
half at the end of the journey, which is ordinarily made in ten days. 




A COUNTET HOTEL. 



" As we start from Cuernavaca we find ourselves on a carriage-road, 
and wonder how it happens that we were told we must go in the saddle. 
The reason is soon apparent, as the carriage-road comes to an end after a 
little while. It reminds us of that famous turnpike somewhere in the 
Western States that began with a macadamized road fifty feet wide, and 
steadily dwindled till it became only a squirrel-track and ran up a tree, or 
a similar road that terminated in a gopher-hole. One gentleman says the 
route from Cuernavaca to Acapulco is spoken of as a hueno camino de 
j)ajaros (a good road for birds), and he is about right. 

" The country is rough and the scenery wild and interesting, except 
that one wearies of mountains and valleys after seeing a few hundreds of 
each. Portions of the way as we leave Cuernavaca behind us are through 
the sugar region. We pass large fields of cane and meet trains of mules 
laden with sugar. At irregular intervals we find villages or isolated houses, 
and in the construction of these buildings we observe that the cane is very 
prominent. Houses in this region are mostly built of cane, and their roofs 
are heavily thatched to keep out the heat of the tropical suns and the 
heavy downpour of tropical Tains. 



THE DAILY EOUTINE. 



351 



" This is the regular routine : We make an early start in the daybreak, 
take a long rest in the middle of the day, then ride in the late afternoon, 
and put up in a meson, or inn, or in the hut of some villager. The accom- 
modations are of the most primitive character, but they are the best the 
country can afford, and we accept them without murmuring. For food, 
we have eggs, chickens, fried bananas, tortillas, and always the national 
dish, frijoles. We can get milk in the morning but not at night, as they 
milk their cows only once a day. 

" Some of the rivers are fordable, others have been bridged, and others 
swollen by rains must be crossed in boats. Some of the boats are large 
enough to ferry our animals along with ourselves, while at the crossing of 




GALLEON OF THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY. 



others we are transported in dugouts, and the horses and mules are com- 
pelled to swim. Of course in such a case everything must be removed 
from the backs of the animals, and this causes a considerable delay. We 
think ourselves fortunate in getting through in ten days when all the hin- 
derances of progress are considered. In some places there is absolutely 
no track, as we follow the beds of streams, where at each rise all traces of 



352 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO.* 

previous travellers are washed awaj. In tlie time of floods these river- 
beds are abandoned, and the banks of the streams are followed. 

"Years and years before Islew England and Kew York were settled 
the Spaniards were traversing this route with long trains of beasts of bur- 
den, laden with the treasures of the East. If you want to know what 
they carried, read Bret Harte's poem of ' The Lost Galleon :' 

*"In sixteen hundred and forty-one 
The regular yearly galleon, 
Laden with odorous gums and spice, 
India cotton and India rice. 
And the richest silks of far Cathay, 
Was due at Acapulco Bay. 

***** 

" ' The trains were waiting outside the walls, 

The wives of the sailors thronged the town, 
The traders sat by their empty stalls, 
• And the Viceroy himself came down • 
The bells in the town were all atrip, 
Te Deums were on each father's lip. 
The limes were ripening in the sun 
For the sick of the coming galleon. 

" 'AH in vain. Weeks passed away, 
And yet no galleon saw the bay ; 
India goods advanced in price ; 
The Governor missed his favorite spice ; 
The senoritas mourned for sandal 
And the famous cottons of Coromandel ; 
And some for an absent lover lost. 
And one for a husband tempest-tossed ; 
***** 

"'And all along the coast that year 
Votive candles were scarce and dear.' 

" A thousand mules and donkeys were required for the transport of the 
freight of one of these galleons ; a cargo was often valued at ^2,000,000, 
and the return one to the East was of equal worth. The return cargo con- 
sisted mostly of silver, cochineal, cocoa, and other Mexican products, to- 
gether with European goods from Spain. The cargoes from Asia were 
taken to the city of Mexico, and whatever did not find a market there was 
sent to Spain by way of Yera Cruz. The old chroniclers say that the 
Mexicans had the first selection of the goods, and often aroused the jeal- 
ousy of their friends in Spain in consequence. 



AN IMPORTANT SEA-POET. 



353 



" Well, here we are at Acapulco, and for the last time dismount from 
our steeds. We look upon the blue waters of the little harbor, but can see 
no galleon at anchor, only a few sailing-ships and one of the steamers of 
the Pacific Mail Company, which has just come into port and lies fuming 
uneasily, as though impatient to continue her voyage. Were it not for the 
semi-monthly visits of the Pacific mail steamers, Acapulco would have no 
regular connection with the rest of the world. The place has a popula- 
tion of three or four thousand only, and it has a fort on an island which 
lies opposite the town, cutting off the long swell of the Pacific Ocean, and 
forming one of the best harbors on the western coast of Mexico." 




TOWN AND CASTLE OF ACAPTJLCO. 



Prank and Fred returned with Doctor Bronson to the city of Mexico 
by diligence. The road is rough, and they were severely jolted in their 
eight hours' ride ; they managed to shorten the rough part to six hours by 
leaving the diligence at Tlalpan and coming thence to the city by the 
tram-way. 

Hardly had the youths shaken the dust of the road from their gar- 
ments than they looked around for "new worlds to conquer." Their 
attention was drawn to Guadalajara (pronounced gwa-da-la-Aa-ra), a city 
that is not often visited by tourists, for the reason that it lies o£E the 
main route of travel. It is the capital of the State of Jalisco, has a popu- 
lation of some eighty or ninety thousand, contains a fine cathedral, and 
23 



354 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



other public buildings, and altogether is worth a good deal more than a 
passing thought. 

" We can go there by train," said Frank, " as the branch line from the 
Mexican Central Railway at Irapuato has been recently opened." 
" How long will it take us to get there ?" queried Fred. 

"About twenty -two hours," 
was the reply. "We can leave 
here at 8.10 p.m., and if not de- 
layed, the north-bound train will 
get us to Irapuato at 6.57 the next 
morning. The train for Guadala- 
jara leaves Irapuato at 8.40 a.m., 
and we are due in that city at 

6 P.M." 

"But perhaps Uncle will not 
wish to go there ; what will we do 
in that case ?" 

" Why, go alone, to be sure, if 
he can spare us tlie time." 

The plan was duly laid before 
Doctor Bronson, who at once gave 
his permission for the youths to 
make the excursion without him. 
He did not care particularly for 
it, and said he would be satisfied 
to look at Guadalajara through 
their eyes. 

They immediately secured 
places in the Pullman sleeping-car for Irapuato, and were off by the 
train that evening. By good-fortune they were introduced during the day 
to a Mexican gentleman, Senor Sanchez, who had a large hacienda near 
Guadalajara, and was then on his way to it. 

With the customary politeness, he informed the youths that his "house 
and all it contained were theirs ;" he followed up the formality by inviting 
them to spend a day or two with him, either on their outward or return 
journey. They took the hint, and concluding that he desired to have a 
little time to himself on his arrival, they arranged to stop off on their 
return from Guadalajara. 

It is 353 kilometres from Mexico City to Irapuato, and 260 from that 
station to Guadalajara, a total of 613 kilometres, or 380 miles. The 




A SCENE ON THE DILIGENCE ROAD. 



THE EOAD TO GUADALAJARA. 



355 



country from Irapuato is for the most part broken, but it contains few 
Jdgh mountains, and here and there the youths found themselves looking 
across plains of considerable extent. The region is well peopled, and 
there are several towns or cities along the route, each of them containing 
upwards of 5000 inhabitants. There are many urroyos and barrancas 
that severely taxed the abilities of the engineers, but they are insignifi- 
cant when compared with the great barrancas between Guadalajara and 
the western coast. Construction parties are at work on the western sec- 
tion of the route, and in due time the locomotive from Guadalajara will 
sound its whistle at San Bias, on the shore of the Pacific Ocean. 



I *^ SS-J^T'^'j:. ? *-*-5j 




AN INTKRIOR TOWN. 



" There are some interesting bridges along the old diligence-road," 
said Mr. Sanchez, " that have excited the admiration of travellers. A few 
miles this side of Guadalajara there is a stone bridge of nineteen arches 
which crosses the Rio Grande de Santiago. Nobody can tell when it 
was built ; it bears at one place the date 1740, but whether that refers to 
the construction or to the repair of the bridge I am unable to say. At 
each end there are the statues of the King and Queen of Spain at the 



356 



THE BOY TKAVELLEKS IN MEXICO. 




time of erection, but 
thej are so worn by 
time and defaced bj' 
vandals that tliey can- 
not be recognized. 

" There is another 
old structure near Za- 
potlanejo, called the 
Bridge of Calderon, 
which crosses a narrow 
but deep arrojo. It is 
of interest to the stu- 
dent of Mexican history, 
AT THE HACIENDA. as it is tlio poiut at 

which the patriot Hidal- 
go, with 80,000 Indians, was defeated by a few hundred Spaniards. His 
men were armed only with bows and arrows and spears, in addition to a 
few old muskets and some wooden cannon that burst at the first fire ; 
the Spaniards were well armed, and had six or eight cannon, which 
wrought havoc among the followers of the patriot priest. They were so 
ignorant of the power of gunpowder that they rushed up to the cannon 
and crowded their hats into the muzzles, in the expectation that they 
would thus prevent the pieces from going off. Thousands of them were 
mowed down, and finally the remnant were driven from the field. This 
was the last great battle fought by Hidalgo ; he retreated to Chihuahua 



BRIGANDS KILLED BY PEIVATE ENTERPEISE. 



357 



with a hundred followers, and not long afterwards was betrayed, captured, 
and executed. 

" The country around here was formerly terribly infested with brig- 
ands," he continued, " but they are rarely heard of now. A large num- 
ber were killed off by the Government troops, others by private enter- 
prise, and finally those that remained were induced to quit the business 
of robbery, and become members of the Rural Guard." 

" You mention private enterprise as a way of getting rid of brigands," 
Fred remarked. " I do not understand it exactly." 

"I can best explain the matter by giving an illustration," Senor San- 
chez replied. " There is a hacienda called Venta de Los Pagarros about 
twenty-five miles from Tepotitlan, which belongs to Senor Perez. It is 



«*-fr''^^ 




A CORNER OP THE MARKET-PLACE. 



twenty miles long^ and there are nearly 50,000 head of cattle upon 
it. Senor Perez bought it for a very low price, as the robbers had driven 
away the former occupants, and nobody dared live there. He strength- 
ened his buildings so that nothing but artillery could do anything against 
them, and then he organized his men into a military force and armed 
and drilled them till they were excellent soldiers. They, were all well 



358 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

mounted, and he had thus a force of 200 men about him, ready to 
start at an hour's notice by day or night. When a band of robbers was 
heard of, it was pursued and hunted down, and no prisoners were taken. 
In two years nearly 100 robbers were killed by Perez and his men, and 
the country became quiet. Other proprietors followed his example and 
brought about a peaceful state of affairs." 

" That is very much the plan on which the owners of the great mills 
at Queretaro protected themselves," Fred remarked, and then the con- 
versation changed to other topics. 

There were broad fields of wheat and barley visible from the win- 
dows of the train, and Fred observed that the fields were separated, and 
protected from the incursions of cattle, by fences or hedges of cactus. 
Their new friend explained that it was the cheapest fence in the world to 
make ; they had only to take the long shoots of the organ cactus, cut 
them into proper lengths, and stick these lengths, or sections, into a trench 
where the fence was to be. The dirt piled around the end of the sec- 
tions serves to keep them in place, they soon take root and grow, and as 
they live for a hundred years or so the owner has no further trouble 
with them. No animal larger than a rabbit can get through such a fence, 
and it is equally impervious to a man unless armed with a hatchet. 

Senor Sanchez left the train at a station about forty miles east of Gua- 
dalajara. The youths named a day when they would visit him, and then 
continued their journey to the city. 

For what they saw and did in Guadalajara we will refer to Fred's 
note-book : 

" It is a handsome city," said the youth, " and we are not surprised to 
learn that it is considered next to Mexico in importance. It has a dozen 
or more fine churches, and its cathedral, which was completed in 1618, is 
one of the oldest in the country, and is considered next to those of the 
capital and Puebla in point of wealth and grandeur. It occupies one side 
of the Grand Plaza, has two tapering steeples and a handsome dome, and 
altogether is well calculated to impress every beholder, whatever may be 
his religious leanings. 

" The interior reminded us of the cathedral of Mexico in a general 
way, though the detail is greatly varied. What surprised us most was the 
high altar, which is thirty feet high and broad in proportion, and as rich 
as carving and precious metals can make it. It was made in Rome, and 
hauled here, we cannot tell how, over the terrible roads between this place 
and Yera Cruz. Some of the blocks weigh several tons, and we shuddered 
as we thought what an expenditure of muscle, human and quadrupedal. 



EFFECT OF AN EARTHQUAKE. 



359 



must have been required to bring these masses of stone from the sea-coast 
500 miles away. 

" The building has suffered from the elements, the cupolas of the tow- 
ers having been thrown down by an earthquake in 1818. Some time in 
the. sixties lightning struck the cathedral during service, and two of the 




COUKT-TARD OF A PRIVATE HOUSE. 



organists were killed by the shock. There are many valuable paintings in 
the cathedral, and in the vaults beneath it are the bones of the bishops and 
priests that have died here during the last 300 years and more. 

" We visited several other churches, and went to the great hospital of 
San Miguel de Belan, which is generally known as ' The Belan.' It is near 



360 



THE BOY TRAVELLEES IN MEXICO. 



the centre of the city, and covers, or rather encloses within its walls, about 
eight acres of ground. It M'as founded about 100 years ago, and at one 
time had a very large revenue ; but successive revolutions and robberies 
have plundered it of nearly all its possessions. It had an income of 

$1,000,000 a year in its best days, 
but has barely ten or fifteen thou- 
sand at present. 

" It is the best constructed 
hospital edifice we ever saw, and 
we're very sorry Doctor Bronson 
is not here to see and appreciate 
it. The buildings are only one 
story high, so that the patients, 
doctors, and nurses have no stairs 
to climb, and the rooms are twen- 
ty-five feet from floor to ceiling, 
and well ventilated. The thick 
walls and roof make the place 
warm in winter and cool in sum- 
mer ; and they told us there is no 
artificial heating, and but little 
change of temperature through- 
out the year, 

"There is another immense es- 
tablishment, called the Hospicio 
de Guadalajara, which is an asy- 
lum rather than a hospital, and an 
asylum for everybody. It was founded about the same time as the Belan 
hospital, by some gentlemen of immense wealth, and they are said to have 
expended eight or ten millions of dollars in building and endowing it. 
Sixteen hundred people are accommodated there, from infants only a few 
hours old up to people who are nearing the end of a century of life. It 
has sixteen departments that comprise an Infant Asylum, Reform School, 
Juvenile School, Orphan Asylum, Deaf and Dumb Asylum, Blind Asy- 
lum, Home for the Aged and Indigent, High-schools for Boys and Girls, 
School of Arts, Schools of Trades, Workshops, College, and Hospital ! 

" We saw boys in the workshop making shoes, clothes, hats, and other 
articles of wear, while others were at work at carpentering, and still others 
were setting type and working a printing-press of the old-fashioned kind. 
In the girls' section there were classes in sewing, knitting, lace-making, and 




IN THE POOR QUARTERS. 



SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES. 



361 



the like ; and there were classes of young women who were learning fine 
embroidery, music, and painting, to tit them for governesses in families. 
It would take too long to write down all we saw and heard, and you might 
get tired before you read it through. We couldn't help wishing that some 
of our very rich men would endow just such establishments in Xew York, 
Boston, Philadelphia, and other large cities of the United States, and take 
their reward in the knowledge that they had done a great deal of practical 
good. 

" We were told that the city has an excellent system of public educa- 
tion, atid many of its people th.ink it is the best in the whole country. 
There are twenty primary day schools, tive evening schools, and two high- 
schools or liceos, one for boys and one for girls. The girls' high-school is 
in an old convent which was contiscated at the time of the Reform, and is 
admirably adapted to its uses. The boys' high -school is in an equally 
spacious building, and the two schools have each four or five hundred 
pupils, with a proportionate number of teachers. The boys' school has a 
library of 30,000 volumes, gathered mainly from the monasteries and con- 
vents. Then there are a School of Arts and Industries and a School of 
Painting similar to that of San Carlos, though somewhat smaller. 

" They have an opera-house and theatre here, and of course such an 
enlightened city as Guadalajara must have a bull-ring. This ring is equal 
to the principal one at the capital, and the 'sport' in it is liberally patron- 
ized. There are four large 
cotton - factories here, and 
there is a considerable in- 
dustry in making pottery. 
We have mentioned else- 
where the pottery of Gua- 
dalajara, which is famous 
throughout the country and 
largely exported. We have 
bought a considerable num- 
ber of the clay statuettes 
that are sold here ; they rep- 
resent all the industries and 
characters of Mexico, the 

prominent men of the country, and in fact of the whole world. Statuettes 
twelve inches in height and well modelled and colored are worth about 
twenty-five cents each, and you can buy smaller ones as low down as a 
cent or even half a cent apiece. They offered to make busts or statuettes 




MEXICANS PLANTING CORN. 



362 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



of Frank and myself for three dollars each, and have them ready in two 
days, but we declined the proposal. 

" As for the people and the sights and scenes of the streets, they are 
so much like what we have described elsewhere that I will not venture 
upon an account for fear of repetition. We will say good-by to this in- 
teresting city, and return to the capital, stopping a day at the hacienda of 
Seiior Sanchez." 

They kept their promise and visited that hospitable gentleman, who 
organized a rodeo, or cattle -muster, for their benefit. The vaqueros, or 
herdsmen, rode away in different directions, and after an absence of an 




hour or two reappeared driving numbers of cattle before them. These 
cattle were assembled in a large drove, and there was a continuous pawing, 
bellowing, and dashing here and there as long as they were together. The 
vaqueros showed their skill in lassoing the animals, seizing them by the 
leg or horn according to previous announcements of their intentions. The 
performance ended with a contest of skill in picking up hats or other 
objects on the ground. Frank placed a silver dollar edgewise on the 
ground, and half a dozen vaqueros, one after the other, endeavored to 
secure it. 

The first, second, and third missed it by only a fraction of an inch. 



HOW THE VAQUEKOS RIDE. 



363 



The fourth tumbled it over but did not catch it. It was set up again for 
the fifth, who missed, and saw the coin taken in by the sixth and last as 
he rode past at a gallop. 

Their host pressed the youths to remain longer, but they felt that they 
might interfere with Doctor Bronson's plans by so doing, and therefore 
declined the invitation. They returned to the capital without any other 
break in their journey, and were warmly congratulated by the Doctor on 
the good use they had made of their time. 




DRIVING A HERD. 



364 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



CHAPTER XXIIL 

INTERVIEW WITH PRESIDENT DIAZ ; HIS PERSONAL APPEARANCE AND HISTORY. 
—A CHECKERED CAREER. — SAVED FROM THE SEA. — THE FAITHFUL PURSER 
AND HIS REWARD.— CHARACTERISTICS OF DIAZ'S ADMINISTRATION.— MADAME 
DIAZ.— A DIPLOMATIC MARRIAGE.— THE ARMY AND NAVY OF MEXICO.— THE 
POSTAL SERVICE. — NEWSPAPERS AND OTHER PUBLICATIONS. — PRINCIPAL 
WRITERS OF FICTION.— FROM MEXICO TO PUEBLA.— HOW THE MEXICAN RAIL- 
WAY WAS BUILT.— DIFFICULTIES OF ENGINEERING.— APIZACO.— THE CITY OF 
THE ANGELS ; ITS CATHEDRAL AND OTHER CURIOSITIES.— MANUFACTURES OF 
PUEBLA.— BATTLE-FIELD OF CINCO BE MA YO. 

IT was a fortunate tiiiiig for the youths that they did not remain another 
day at the cattle -hacienda of SeSor Sanchez. After listening to a 
short account of what they had seen, Doctor Bronson told them that he 
had a pleasurable surprise in store for the next day. 

" If it's a surprise," said Frank, " 1 suppose we must wait and ask no 
questions." 

" There's no occasion for secrecy," responded the Doctor. " The Amer- 
ican Minister has arranged for me to have an interview to-morrow with 
the President of the Republic, and you can accompany me." 

" That is a pleasurable surprise, indeed," said Frank, and Fred prompt- 
ly expressed a similar opinion. 

" I am to go to the legation at eleven o'clock," continued Doctor Bron- 
son, " and meet the Minister, who is to present me to the President. The 
interview is fixed for half-past eleven at the National Palace." 

It is unnecessary to add that Frank and Fred were i-eady at the ap- 
pointed time, and that a carriage left the door of the hotel early enough to 
deposit the trio at the door of the legation a few minutes before eleven. 
The arrival at the palace was duly arranged, and the party was in the ante- 
room of the President when an official came to call them to an audience 
with the President. 

The time of the chief of a nation is valuable, and the interview was 
over in about twenty minutes. There was nothing official about it, and 
the visitors came away much pleased with the way they had been received. 
The conversation ran upon general topics ; it related chiefly to what the 
strangers had seen during their visit to the country, and some pleasant 



INTEKVIEW WITH THE PRESIDENT. 



365 



allusions on the part- of the President to the United States and a few of 
its public men. He did not follow the customary form of politeness by 
saying that his house and all it contained were theirs, but as they rose to 
leave he shook hands with them cordially, and said that if he could be 
of any service during the rest of their stay, he hoped they would not 
hesitate to apply to him through his and their friend, the American 
Minister. 

" A more courteous gentleman than President Diaz," wrote Frank, " it 




PRKSIDENT PORFIRIO DIAZ. 



would be diflScult to find, and I believe this is the testimony of his oppo- 
nents as well as of his friends. Perhaps you would like to know some- 
thing about his history ; well, here it is : 

" Porfirio Diaz was born in August, 1830, in Oajaca, and was educated 



366 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



there. He began the study of law, but in the war between the United 
States and Mexico he entered the army and fought in defence of his coun- 
try. He remained in the army and studied military science for several 
years, when he went back to law again, on account of the triumph of the 




VIEW IN OAJACA. 



party that gave the Dictatorship of Mexico to Santa Anna. He fought in 
the revolution that drove Santa Anna away in 1855, and a few years later 
lie joined the Liberal party in the War of the Reform. He continued with 
the Liberals during the French occupation ; at the capture of Puebla by 
the French, in 1863, he was made prisoner, but escaped. He was then 
given the command of the Liberal army, but accepted it on the condition 
that he should soon be replaced, as he was afraid that his youth might 
cause the older generals to be jealous of him. 

" He fought all through the war under great discouragements, was 
captured a second time, and a second time escaped. After the retire- 
ment of the French from Mexico, in 1867, he rapidly increased his army, 



A GREAT RISK. 



367 



and besieged and captured Puebla ; then he laid siege to the city of Mex- 
ico at the same time that Maximilian was being besieged bj another part 
of the Liberal army at Queretaro. In the following autumn he was a can- 
didate for the Presidency, but was defeated by Juarez ; then he laid plans 
for a revolution, but was unsuccessful and obliged to flee from the coun- 
try. He w^ent to 'New Orleans, and after a time was permitted to return ; 
then he was concerned in another revolution, and went again into exile, 
whence he was called back by his friends in Oajaca, who had revolted 
against the Government. 

" In his return he ran a great risk, as he was obliged to come to Mex- 
ico by way of Vera Cruz. He took passage under an assumed name, and 
remained in his room on the steamer under pretence of being sea-sick. 
"When the steamer was leaving Tampico he suspected that his identity 
had been discovered by the officers of a Mexican regiment, which had been 
taken on board at that port. Discovery and arrest meant execution, and 
he jumped overboard and endeavored to swim to the shore, which was 
about ten miles away. The captain thought he was a lunatic, and sent a 




SATED FROM THE SEA. 



boat after him ; he fought against being rescued, but was taken into the 
boat and returned to the ship. The purser took charge of him, and Diaz 
immediately told who he was, and asked for protection. 

" The purser promised it. The colonel of the regiment suspected that 
Diaz was on board, and in the hearing of the latter offered $50,000 for 
information that would lead to his capture. Diaz tells how his heart sank 



368 THE BOY TKAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

when he heard the offer, and how it beat with satisfaction when the purser 
rej)lied that he knew nothing about the insurgent leader. 

" The purser smuggled him on shore disguised as a coal-heaver, and 
Diaz reached Oajaca in safety. After his elevation to the Presidency one 
of the first things he did was to appoint that jDurser a consul to represent 
Mexico at a French seaport, and afterwards gave him the consulshij) at 
San Francisco. 

" The Oajaca revolution was successful ; Lerdo, who was then (1876) 
President, was driven out of the country, and there was a very disturbed 
state of affairs for a time. It ended in the election of Diaz as President ; 
he held the office from May, 18TT, till November, 1880, when he was suc- 
ceeded by President Gonzales, the Constitution then in force, and origi- 
nally proposed by Diaz, forbidding the President to succeed himself. He 
succeeded Gonzales in 1884 for a second term of four years ; in 1887 the 
Constitution was modified so as to permit the President to serve for a 
third term, and in consequence of this modification he was again elected 
in that year. On the 1st of December, 1888, he took the oath of ofiice, 
in accordance with the Constitutional provisions, and began his third term, 
which will expire December 1, 1892. 

" There you have a personal history boiled down. President Diaz is a 
thorough believer in general education, and in railways, telegraphs, and 
other modern enterprises; in this belief he has been bitterly opposed by 
the Reactionary party, which is principally composed of the old aristocracy. 
In his first term concessions were granted for the construction of railways 
by American companies, and other concessions have been made since that 
time. One writer who is not particularly friendly to the President says : 
' Under the administration of Diaz manufactures have increased, the re- 
sources of the country have been developed, commerce has multiplied, 
education has been advanced, the revenues have been appropriated to the 
purposes for which they were designed, travel is safe, bandits have been 
dispersed, and railroads and telegraphs are extending.' And from all we 
can learn this is by no means an overstatement of the case.'' 

For the benefit of his young lady friends at home Fred added to 
Frank's sketch that President Diaz had been twice married, his present 
wife being the daughter of Hon. Romero Rubio, Secretary of the Interior. 
She is said to be a beauty of the brunette type, charming in manners, an 
accomplished linguist, speaking several languages, of which English is one, 
and an exquisite judge of feminine apparel. Her dresses are made by 
Worth, the famous man-milliner of Paris, and therefore she may justly be 
considered the leader of fashion in the capital of Mexico. Her duties are 



POLITICAL PARTIES IN MEXICO. 



369 



less onerous than those of tlie wife of the President of the United States, 
as there are no receptions similar to those of the White Honse, and conse- 
quently the Mexican capital is free from the social ferment which is con- 
stantly going on at "Washington. 

Doctor Bronson added a note to the effect that there was a considera- 
ble amount of diplomacy in the marriage of President Diaz with his pres- 
ent wife. Her father was one of 

the leaders of the Church party, 
and the marriage strengthened 
Diaz with the Conservatives by 
making them less hostile to him 
and his policy ; the party was 
further concilialed when Seiior 
Rubio became Secretary of the 
Interior, and other members of 
the old opposition were provided 
with places under the Govern-, 
ment. But though the hostility 
of the Church party has been 
diminished it still exists ; its lead- 
ers are ready to take advantage 
of any mistake of the Govern- 
ment, and if they could again ob- 
tain control they would speedily 
overthrow the present Constitu- 
tion, whose authority they have 
never acknowledged. 

" The hostility of the two po- 
litical parties in Mexico to each 
other," added the Doctor, " is far 
greater than that between the two 
great parties of the United States. 
The Liberal party in Mexico be- 
lieves in general education, in the construction of railways, the encourage- 
ment of manufacturing and other commercial enterprises, and a complete 
separation of Church and State. The Clerical party believes in the con- 
dition of affairs which existed before 1858, in a union of Church and State, 
and the control of education by the Church, and it has been a steady and 
consistent opponent of the railways that connect Mexico with the United 
States. It looks with alarm upon the present influx of foreigners and the 

24: 




HOUSE WITH TILE FRONT. 



370 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

adoption of their ideas by the Mexicans. It is proper to add that this 
alarm is shared by many adherents of tlie Liberal party, who fear that 
their country is being denationalized, and will some day be gathered into 
the fold of the United States." 

Prank and Fred examined the Constitution of Mexico, and found that 
it had many points of resemblance to that of the United States. Each of 
the States has the right to manage its own local affairs, but all are bound 
together for general governmental purposes. The central government 
consists of legislative, judicial, and executive branches, as in the United 
States ; the President is the executive head, and the Senate and House of 
Representatives form the legislative branches. There are two Senators 
for each State, and one Representative for every forty thousand inhabi- 
tants ; Senators and Representatives alike receive $3000 a year. Con- 
gress meets on April 1st and September 16th, and each of its sessions 
lasts two months. During the interim between the sessions a permanent 
committee of both Houses remains at the capital. Representatives must 
be twenty-five years of age, and Senators thirty years, and both must be 
residents of the States they represent. All religions are tolerated, but no 
ecclesiastical body is allowed to acquire landed property. 

Regarding the army and navj^ Fred wrote as follows: 

"The President is commander-in-chief of the military and naval 
forces, just as he is in the United States. According to the official figures, 
the war footing of the army comprises 3700 ofiicers and 160,963 men ; 
these are divided into 131,523 infantry, 25,790 dragoons, and 3650 artil- 
lerymen. On a peace footing the army includes about 30,000 men of all 
arms of the service, including the Rurales, who keep the brigands in 
order, as we have described elsewhere. A friend at my elbow says the 
oflScers are almost as numerous as the privates, and he has known a garri- 
son where there were twenty-nine oflacers and only twenty-seven soldiers. 

"The navy won't take long to describe, as it contains three small gun- 
boats and two larger ones. The small gunboats each carry one 20-pound 
gun, and the larger boats two guns of the same calibre. They are unar- 
mored vessels, are not fast, and from all we can learn we don't think 
the navy of the United States need have any fear of that of Mexico, at 
any rate, after we complete some of the ships we are now building." 

"While we are considering public matters," wrote Frank, "let us 
look at the Postal Department. There are about 1200 post-offices in the 
republic, or one for every 8750 inhabitants ; in the United States we 
have a post-office for every 1200 inhabitants, or seven times as many as 
Mexico in proportion to the population. The number of pieces of mail 



EAILWAY BUILDING. 



3Y1 




AMERICAN RESIDENTS OF MEXICO. 



matter handled in a year in Mexico is an 
av^erage of two to each inhabitant, while in 
the United States the average is fifty-one. 
The Mexican mails are increasing in import- 
ance every year, and will continue to do so 
as the people become better educated. The 
extension of the railways causes many new 
post-oflEices to be established, and also many 
telegraph otfices. There are more than 20,000 

miles of telegraph and 500 telegraph offices ; 14,000 miles of telegraph 
belong to the Government, and the remaining portion is tlie property 
of private companies, railways, and individuals. * 

" If you want an example of progress look at the railways. Mexico 
had 379 miles of iron roads in 1879, while in 1887 it had 3962 miles open 
for traffic, including 92 miles of city and suburban lines. The length 
of railway completed and in operation at the end of 1888 was some- 
thing more than 4600. Competent authorities say that by the end of 
1889 the length of railways in operation in Mexico will exceed 5000 
miles. A great many concessions for railways have been granted by the 



372 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



Government for lines that are not likely to be constructed in the life of 
the present generation. At one time there seemed to be a mania for 
railway concessions, and the holder of a permission to bnild a line over 
an impracticable route, between two insignificant points, believed that he 
wonld be able to sell it for a fortune to an English or American cor- 
poration. 

"Newspapers and other publications have increased in the last few 
years, but not as rapidly as have the railwaj^s. The number is constantly 
changing, new publications being started and old ones discontinued ; and 




A MILITARY POST. 



sometimes the starting and discontinuance are very close together, as is 
the case in other parts of the world. Altogether there are about 300 
newspapers in the republic, and of this number fully one-third are 
published in the capital. Mexico City has as man}' newsj^apers as New 
York or Chicago in proportion to its population, but their circulation is 
not by any means as large ; Mexican publishers are not obliged to stretch 
their consciences by making affidavits every morning as to the hundreds 
of thousands of copies they printed on the previous day, or the hogsheads 
of ink they used for each edition. But though they may not print and 
sell as many copies as the New York dailies, it is certain that the Mexi- 
can papers are steadily gaining in circulation and influence, and the fut- 
ure is full of promise for them. 

" The capital city lias a daily paper called The Two RejpubliGS, which 



NEWSPAPEES IN THE CAPITAL. 



373 



is printed in English ; it is specially interesting to strangers, as it has a list 
of the things and places they wish to see, and contains time-tables of the 
railways. Sometimes it has special despatches from the United States and 
other parts of the outside world, but as it has no competitor and its circu- 
lation could not be greatly increased by a large expenditure, it wisely 
studies economy to an extent that would not succeed in New York. 
There's a weekly paper called The Mexican Financier^ printed in English 
and Spanish ; it circulates all over the world, and is an excellent authority 
for everything relating to railways, banking, and commercial matters in 
general. The Finanoier discusses important questions relating to the af- 
fairs of the Government, attacks abuses of every kind, and suggests ways 
in which the prosperity of the country and the welfare of the people may 
be improved. 

" The French population is large enough to have a daily paper in its 
own language, and the Germans have a weekly one. There are twelve or 
fifteen dailies in Spanish, and they represent all shades of politics. Gen- 
erally it pays better for a newspaper to be on the side of the Government 
than against it ; but some of the opposition papers are profitable, and 
edited with much ability. The style of opposition writing here is to at- 
tack very savagely, and sometimes the editors find themselves in prison on 




A COUNTRY POST-OFFICE. 



account of the bitterness of their editorials and their sweeping charges 
against public men and measures. Some of the editorials we have read 
since we came here surpass anything in JSTew York or Chicago papers in 
the heat of political campaigns, and that is saying a great deal. The editor- 
in-chief of El Monitor EejmUicano served a sentence of seven months in 



374 



THE BOY TRAVELLEKS IN MEXICO. 




COMPOSITOR FOR " THE TWO REPUBLICS.' 



the Penitentiary for a too free use of his pen. He was charged with ex- 
citing sedition ; he was ably defended, and liis case was carried to tlie high- 
est court in the country, which affirmed the decree of the lower courts. 

" You couldn't remember them all if we should give a list of the daily 
papers in Mexico, and so we refrain ; still worse off would you be with 
the names of thirty or more weekly papers, and as many monthlies and 

other periodicals. You can find publi- 
cations here on almost any topic that 
one could name, and you can find an 
abundance of romances, at least that is 
what they tell us. The popular nov- 
els deal mostly with Mexican life, man- 
ners, and history ; a friend tells us that 
we should read 'Guadalupe,' by Irenio 
Paz, ' Calvario y Tabor,' by Yincente 
Piva Palacio, and 'Paisajes y Leyen- 
des/ by Ignacio Manuel Altamirano. 
The first is a novel, describing Mex- 
ican home scenes and life ; the second 
is chiefly concerned with the reign of 
Maximilian, and the sufferings of the people during the foreign invasion ; 
and the third is an account of the manners and customs of the Mexican 
people in former times and at present. We intend to get these books, and 
read them at our leisure on the way home." 

The delightful and interesting visit of our friends to the Mexican cap- 
ital came to an end, as all things must. Farewell calls were made upon 
friends and acquaintances, and early one morning the trio left the hotel 
for the station of the Mexican Railway, as the line from the capital to Yera 
Cruz is called. The daily passenger train leaves at 6.30 a.m., and reaches 
Yera Cruz, or rather is due there, at '7.33 p.m. The distance is 263 miles, 
and there is a branch line to Puebla twenty-nine miles in length. 

The manager of the hotel told our friends that it was advisable for 
them to procure tickets, and check their trunks in the afternoon preceding 
their departure, else there might be mistakes and consequent delay in get- 
ting away. Assisted by one of the runners of the hotel, Frank attended 
to these formalities, and completed them to his entire satisfaction. Tickets 
were taken to Puebla, and baggage checked to that place ; the trunks were 
carefully weighed, and all exceeding thirty-three pounds to each passenger 
was heavily charged for. Frank remarked that evidently the managers of 
the line were not running it for fun, but to make money. 



RAILWAY FEOM THE CAPITAL TO VEKA CRUZ. 375 

" And well they may," said an American gentleman who was talking 
with the Doctor when the youth returned from the station. " This line of 
railway is one of the most expensive in the world," he continued, " partly 
in consequence of the dilBcult engineering over the mountains and partly 
by reason of the wastefulness of its builders. According to the report of 
the Minister of Finance, its total cost was $36,319,526, or at the rate of 
more than $123,000 per mile ; it. was built with Englisli capital, aided by 
Mexican subsidies. 

"It was begun in 1852, though there liad been a concession for a line 
as early as 1837. The concession included a Government subsidy, and one 
of the conditions was that construction should be pushed from both ends 
of the line towards the middle. This necessitated the transportation to 
the city of Mexico of rails, locomotives, cars, and all sorts of building ma- 
terial over the old diligence-road ; the transport of these things gave em- 
ployment to great numbers of men and animals, but increased the cost 
enormously, probably twice what it would have otherwise been. The work 
was suspended several times by revolutions, wars, lack of funds, change of 
government, and other obstacles ; and the line was not completed until 
the end of 1872. It was inaugurated by President Lerdo, on the 1st of 
January, 1873, having been solemnly blessed by the Archbishop of Mex- 
ico the previous day. 

"• When you see the section between Boca del Monte and Orizaba, 
where the railway descends 4,000 feet in twenty-five miles, with numer- 
ous curves of 300 feet radius and gradients of three or four per cent., you 
will not wonder that a great deal of money was expended in crossing the 
mountains. While the surveys' were being made it was frequently neces- 
sary to lower the engineers by means of ropes over the precipices, and 
the workmen were often suspended in this way until they could cut deep 
enough into the side of the mountain to obtain a foothold." 

There was not much of interest along the railway line as the train 
rolled out of the capital. Our friends found themselves skirting Lake 
Tezcoco, and they had a near and farewell view of the famous church of 
Guadalupe ; in order to avoid heavy grades, the railway takes a circuitous 
course, and is much longer than the wagon-road connecting the capital 
with Puebla. For many miles it is bordered on both sides by fields of 
maguey ; Frank and Fred estimated that the acres of maguey plants they 
had seen since entering the country w^ere sufficient to supply pulque 
enough for a population three times as large as that of the republic at 
the present time. 

As they neared Apizaco they saw some changes in the general aspect 



376 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



of the country, but it was still the tier7'a fria, or cold region, in which 
they had been so long sojourning. At Apizaco they changed to another 
train, which took them over the branch line to Puebla, landing them at 
the station of that city at the hour of noon. They sought the Hotel Dili- 
gencias, and found it a comfortable establishment, from a Mexican point 
of view. 

Puebla is a city of 70,000 inhabitants ; it is old and wealthy, and its 
cathedral is one of the finest in Mexico — some do not hesitate to give it 
higher rank than the cathedral of the capital. Our friends went the usual 
round of sight-seeing in the city, and according to custom, one of the first 
things they saw was the cathedral. 

" Stop a moment," said Frank, " the cathedral was not the first object 

to attract our atten- 
tion. Our eyes had 
been fixed upon the 
great volcano, Popo- 
catepetl and his white 
sister ; they are in 
full view from the 
city and much nearer 
than at Mexico, so 
that they are far more 
impressive. Then, 
too, we had a view of 





SUKTEYING UNDER DIFFICULTIES. 



THE CATHEDEAL OF PUEBLA. 



377 



-r^ 



^^T^'f 



1' M ..-r-TT^r-^-fi^ri&>»^nH^r— ^^^^.P-^^_r:]lJLL| 



-I I TT- 



■■■ >"■! i" ' " — 



the noble peak 
of Orizaba, of 
which we shall 
have more to say 
later on. 

" Puebla has 
so many church- 
es," continued 
Frank, "that you 
can't expect us 
to visit all of 
them. We went 
to the cathedral, 
which was con- 
secrated in 1649, and therefore is a 
venerable building ; additions have 
been made to it at various times 
since then, and within the last two 
or three years a handsome monu- 
ment to Pope Pio Nono has been 
erected on the terrace on which the 
cathedral stands. The building has 
two fine towers ; we climbed to the 
top of one of them, and had a fine 
view. Fred and I did the climbing, while the Doctor remained below. 

" You can judge of the richness of the interior when I tell you that 
the high altar cost more than $110,000. There are eighteen bells in the 
tower, the largest of them weighing nine tons, and an inscription on the 
tower tells that this large bell cost $100,000. The chapels abound in 
sculpture and paintings, and if we should make a list of them, without 
any comment whatever, I'm afraid you would find it too long for patient 
perusal. The cathedral is 323 feet long by 100 wide, and occupies an im- 
posing position which is well calculated to impress the beholder. 

" We visited two other churches, the San Francisco and La Compania, 
and found them well worth the time we devoted to them, and a great deal 
more than we could spare. Our guide showed us the ruins of the covered 
way to the Inquisition ; for Puebla, no less than the city of Mexico, had a 
branch of this institution of the Church. Puebla has always been noted 
as a religious city ; it was founded as an antidote to heathen Cholu- 
la, which is only a few miles away, and its full name is Puebla de los 




KUINS OF THE COTERKD WAT TO 
THE INQUISITION. 



378 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



Angeles 



' Town of the Angels.' Before the Laws of the Reform went 
into force fonr-iifths of the valuation of real estate and other property in 
Puebla belonged to the Chnrch, and one-iifth to private individuals. 

"Puebla has extensive numufactures of cotton cloth, glassware, and pot- 
tery. Like Guadalajara, it is famous for its pottery, and it is also famous 
for glazed tiles, which have been liberally used for ornamenting the houses, 
both inside and out. Domes of churches and their outer and inner walls 
are covered with these tiles, and the same is the case with many private 




CATHEDRAL OF PUEBLA. 



buildings. The effect is very pretty, though sometimes too gaudy for our 
taste ; but then, you know, the Mexicans are fond of color. Another fa- 
mous manufacture of Puebla is braided straw-work. Baskets and mats 
were offered to us in great quantity and variety, and we found them so 
pretty that we invested a handful of dollars in these articles. They will 
come in very well at Christmas- time for friends whom we wish to re- 
member. 

" The city has a Plaza Mayor, a Zocala, an Alameda, and a Paseo, just 
like any and every Mexican city. AVe gave a glance at them, and then 
went to the battle-ground of tlie C'lnco de Mayo (5th of May, 1862). It 
is on the hill of Guadalupe, and from one point we have a view of three 



BATTLES AT PUEBLA. 379 

snow-covered volcanoes, together with a fourth mountain tliat just barely 
misses reaching the snow-line. A much more important battle than that 
of the Clnco de Mayo was fought here April 2, 1867, when General Por- 
lirio Diaz, now President, stormed Puebla and captured the imperial gar- 
rison." 




STKEET SCENE IN PCEBLA. 



380 



THE BOY TRAVELLEES IN MEXICO. 



CHAPTEE XXIV. 

FURTHER SIGHTS IN PUEBL A. — ECCLESIASTICAL BUILDINGS.— SCHOOLS, HOSPI- 
TALS, ASYLUMS, AND OTHER PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS.— CHOLULA AND ITS GREAT 
PYRAMID.— FIRST SIGHT OF THE PYRAMID ; ITS CHARACTER, SIZE, AND PECU- 
LIARITIES.— ANCIENT CHOLULA.— MASSACRE OF INHABITANTS BY CORTEZ.— 
RUMORS OF BURIED TREASURES.— HOW A CRAFTY PRIEST WAS FOILED.— VISIT 
TO TLASCALA.— THE STATE LEGISLATURE IN SESSION.— BANNER CARRIED BY 
CORTEZ.— FIRST CHRISTIAN CHURCH IN AMERICA.— ANCIENT PULPIT AND BAP- 
TISMAL FONT.— A REVERED SHRINE.— FROM TLASCALA TO APIZACO AND ON- 
WARD TOWARDS THE GULF. 

" T]Sr the height of its glory," said Fred, " Puebla contained more than 
-A. ninety churches. In 1869 it had sixty cliurches, nine monasteries, 
twenty-one collegiate houses, thirteen nunneries, and numerous chapels 
and shrines. The confiscation of ecclesiastical property has reduced the 
■number of the churches to little more than twenty, abolished the nunneries 




PART OF PUEBLA. 



IN AN INSANE ASYLUM. 381 

and all the monasteries except two, whicli are really hospitals or alms- 
houses for old and disabled priests. Some of tlie confiscated buildings 
have been sold for private uses, and others converted into schools, hospi- 
tals, libraries, and other Government establishments for local. State, or gen- 
eral government use. 

" Doctor Bronson had a letter of introduction to the superintendent of 
the Hospital de Dementes, or Insane Asylum, whicli is in the building that 
was formerly the nunnery of Santa Rosa. We accompanied the Doctor 
when he went to deliver the letter, and were politely received and shown 
through the establishment. The hospital appears to be well managed, and 
Doctor Bronson was much interested in it. Of course the building was 
particularly attractive to Frank and myself, as we wanted to see how the 
nuns were lodged in the olden times. They certainly had a most delight- 
ful home so far as the eye was concerned, and I don't wonder that the 
nunneries in Mexico were popular among the women. The decorations 
everywhere were of beautiful tiles ; the courts and their walls, the walls 
of rooms, the ceilings, the oratories, the bath-rooms, and even the kitchens 
and cooking stoves, were all covered with finely painted and glazed tiles. 
It is easy to keep such rooms clean, and we certainly have never seen a 
cleaner and neater building anywhere. We did not ask whether the at- 
tractions of the place had any beneficial effect upon the insane ]3atients, 
but certainly they ought to have. 

"From all we could observe, the city is admirably provided with hos- 
pitals, schools, and asylums, and no doubt the fact that so many suitable 
buildings were ready at hand had something to do with their number. 
Then, too, the Church had made liberal provision for the sick and suffer- 
ing, and the Government here, as in other cities, had the good-sense not 
to undo tlie philanthropic work which was so long canned on under relig- 
ious auspices. In the general hospital half the patients are treated by 
allopathy and lialf by homoeopath3^ The advocates of either system can 
readily demonstrate its superiority over the other, as they can in other 
countries besides Mexico." 

Every visitor to Puebla should go to Cholula, and particularly to its 
great pyramid, which is, in some respects, the most remarkable edifice on 
the American continent. In point of fact, very few visitors fail to see it, 
and many of them go to Cholula before doing anything else. 

" It is an easy excursion," wrote Frank, " as Cholula is only six or 
seven miles from Puebla, and can be reached by a tram-way which de- 
posits you at the very foot of the great pyramid. A special car for 
sixteen persons or a smaller number can be had for ten dollars, and it is 



382 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



as mucli subject to your orders as a private carriage would be. As we 
were three instead of sixteen, we decided to go in the ordinary way, pay- 
ing fifty cents each for the round trip. The cars afford a fine view, and 
altogether we greatly enjoyed the excursion, 

" We took a guide from the hotel, and he called our attention to the 
various buildings and other objects, of which there were so many that 
they are considerably confused in our recollection. We crossed the 













PYRAMID OF CHOLULA. 



Attoyac Valley, which abounds in fields of grain, and is dotted with ruined 
churches and monasteries, one of the latter having been converted into an 
iron-founder}'- and another into a cotton-mill. There is an old SiDanish 
bridge crossing the Attoyac Eiver, and the Mexicans have shown their ■ 
ability to utilize the water-power of the stream by building several mills 
upon it. 

"We had not gone far before our eyes took in the mound, or pyramid 
of Cholula, and also the great volcanoes of Popocatepetl and the White 
Woman all in one view. The mound did not seem insignificant, 
although backed by these great mountains ; they are thirty miles away, 



HISTOKIC SKETCH OF CHOLULA. 



.383 



though thej seem much nearer, wliile the pyramid is close upon our 
horizon and steadily swells into the sky as we approach it. 

" This is a good j)lace for a bit of history. Cholula was an important 
city, and covered a large area, when Cortez came to Mexico ; under the 
conquerors it had at one time fifty churches and other ecclesiastical build- 
ings, but now it has dwindled to a population of less than 5000, and most 
of its former edifices are in ruins. The great pyramid is the principal 
monument of the Aztecs, and in fact it is the best preserved of their 
monuments to-day in all Mexico. For a picture of what it was when 
Cortez looked from its summit, we have read with great interest the 
description in Prescott's History. Here it is : 

" ' Nothing could be more grand than the view which met the eye 
frojii the truncated summit of the pyramid. Towards the north stretched 




VIEW FROM THE TOP OF THE PYRAMID. 



the bold barrier of porphyry rock, which Nature has reared round the 
Yalley of Mexico, with the huge Popocatepetl and Iztaccihuatl standing 
like two sentinels to guard the entrance of this enchanted region. Far 
away to the south was seen the conical head of Orizaba soaring high into 



384 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



the clouds, and nearer, the barren, though beautifully shaped Sierra de 
Malinche, throwing its broad shadows over the plains of Tlascala. Three 
of these volcanoes, higher than the highest peak in Europe, and shrouded 
in snows which never melt under the fierce sun of the tropics, at the foot 
of the spectator the sacred city of Cholula, with its bright towers and pin- 
nacles sparkling in the sun, reposing 
: amidst gardens and verdant groves. 

"^^' t Such was the magnificent prospect 

^:=^ ^ which met the eye of the conquerors, 

and may still, with slight change, 
meet that of the modern traveller, 
as he stands on the broad plateau of 
the pyramid, and his eye wanders 
over the fairest portion of the beau- 
tiful plateau of Puebla.' 

"We are quite willing to adopt 
Prescott's description for our own, 
as the scene is the same to-day as in 
the time of Cortez, except that there 
is little left of the sacred city of 
Cholula, with its spires and pinna- 
cles, its gardens and verdant groves. 
The pyramid is a stupendous struct- 
ure, and w^orthy a place by the side 
of the great pyramids of Egypt. It was long thought to be a natural 
mound, but all the excavations that have been made in it show that 
it is an artificial work, built by time and patience and the muscle of 
many thousands of men. Its interior is of earth, and its exterior w^as 
once stone and adobe, but time has covered much of the outside with 
earth, in which trees, grass, and bushes have taken root and grow^ luxu- 
riantly. 

'' The car stopped at the foot of the pyramid, and there we alighted. 
There is a sloping road leading to the summit ; it was built by the Span- 
iards, and in its construction much of the old masonry was removed. We 
ascended partly by this road, and partly by steps, pausing several times on 
the way in order to rest and take in the ever-changing view. We did not 
take the measurements of the mound, and therefore must give you the 
figures of others. 

"Humboldt says the mound is 1400 feet square, covering forty-five 
acres of o-round, and 160 feet high ; another authority makes it 177 feet 




SPOUT AT CHOLULA. 



THE FAMOUS PYEAMID. 385 

liigli, and 1425 feet square. Another, and probably the most exact meas- 
urement, gives the following figures : 

"Korth line, 1000 feet; east line, 1026 feet; south line, 833 feet; and 
■west line, 1000 feet. 

" The summit is a platform, or plateau, measuring 203 by 144 feet, and 
having an area of not far from one acre. This plateau has a stone parapet 
around it, and there is a chapel in the centre ; the mound was evidently 
built in four stories, like some of the oldest pyramids of Egypt ; but they 
are less distinct than the stories or stages of the famous pyramid of Sak- 
kara, on the banks of the Nile, which is said to have been built by the 
children of Israel during their captivity. 

" The sides of the pyramid correspond to the cardinal points of the 
compass, north, south, east, and west; and in this respect the structure 
resembles the great pyramid of Cheops. ^Nobody can tell when it was 




LOCAL FREIGHT TRAIN. 



built ; the Aztecs found it here when they came, and the Indians whom 
they conquered said it was not the work of their ancestors. The Aztecs 
dedicated it to their god Quetzalcoatl, and every year they sacrificed on 
the summit of the mound thousands of victims in the manner we have 
described in our account of Tenochtitlan. When the Spaniards came here 
they found a statue of the Aztec deity on the place where the chapel now 
25 



386 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



stands ; one of the first acts of Cortez was to destroy the statue, and order 
the erection of a church in its place. 

" In his report to the King, Cortez said the city of Cholula contained 
20,000 houses and the suburbs as many more. The peoj)le received him 
kindly, but he learned, or pretended to learn, that they were plotting 
against him. So he called a meeting of all the dignitaries, under pretence 














A RELIC OF THE PAST. 



of a consultation, and when they were assembled he ordered a general 
massacre. Six thousand of the people were slain, and for two days the 
city was given over to be pillaged by the Spaniards and their allies the 
Tlascalans, who were bitter enemies of the Cholulans. The Tlascalans 
were, of course, gratified with the slaughter and pillage, but Cortez of- 
fended them deeply when he refused to permit the sacrifice of the prison- 
ers captured in the affair. 

"We remained nearly two hours on the summit of the mound enjoy- 
ing the magnificent view, and trying to picture the place as it was in and 
before the days of Cortez, and shuddering as we thought of the blood that 
had been shed there in sacrifices and by the swords of the conquerors. 
Fred made a sketch of the view, and then we descended and looked 
through the village, which contained very little of interest ; next we took 



NATIVE CRAFTINESS. 



387 



a Mexican dinner at the Fonda de la Reforma, a small but clean restaurant 
on the Plaza Mayor. The plaza is as large as that of the capital city, but 
so little used that it is grass-covered in many places. There were few peo- 
ple there when we saw it, but they told us that it is quite lively on market- 
day, when everybody in the town comes there ; there is a Zocala in the 
centre of the plaza, but it offered so few attractions that we did not visit 
it. We strolled through the rained churches, and our guide told us that 
one of them, the Capilla Real, which consists of three churches in one, 
was built for the especial accommodation of the Indians. The massacre 
which Cortez ordered is supposed to have begun on the plaza, but no one 
knows the exact spot. 

" The natives have a tradition that there are vast amounts of treasure 
concealed in the pyramid of Cholula, and we remark that this tradition 
seems to prevail concerning old structures in all parts of the world. We 
heard it in Egypt, India, Japan, China, 
Palestine, and other countries, and pre- 
sume we shall continue to hear it 
wherever we go until we give up trav- 
elling and settle down to home life. 

" Mr. Brocklehurst tells a good sto- 
ry about a priest who once learned 
through the confessional that one of 
his parishioners had discovered the 
cave where Montezuma's treasures 
were hidden. He explains that there 
is a belief common through Mexico 
that at the time of the invasion Mon- 
tezuma hid all his treasures, and af- 
terwards he and his high -priest put 
to death all that assisted in the hid- 
ing, so that only they two should pos- 
sess the secret. 

" The priest persuaded the Indian 
to show him the cave, but it was only 
on the condition that he should be 
blindfolded while going to it. The 

priest thought to outwit the Indian, and so he managed to drop the beads 
from his rosary, one by one, as he walked along ; in fact he had provided 
himself with several rosaries, so that he would have beads enough for the 
road. 




INDIAN FARM LABORERS. 



388 



THE BOY TKAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



" The priest saw the treasures in the cave and then walked home blind- 
folded, as he had come. When home was reached, the Indian remarked to 
his reverence, ' You had the misfortune to break your rosary, and drop the 
beads on the road ; I picked them up, and if you count them you'll find 
they're all here.' And to this day no white man has found out where 
those treasures are concealed. 

" Secrets are preserved generation after generation by these people ; 
there may or may not be any treasures of Montezuma in the caves around 
Mexico, but if the Indians know of their existence and the place of their 



^J 







AN AZTEC RELIC. 



concealment, and believe it their duty not to reveal the hiding-place, noth- 
ing can ever wring the secret from them. Persuasion, threats, punishment, 
torture, have been tried repeatedly upon these primitive people, but all to 
no purpose. 

" There is a document among the records of Tlascala which says a tribe 
of Tlascalans brought in large quantities of gold-dust, and gave to the 
Church enough to make and pay for the crown of the Virgin of Guada- 
lupe. The Spaniards tried to find out whence it was obtained, but the 
Indians would not reveal the locality of the placer. Losing all patience, 
they tied up several of the Indians, and flogged them ' within an inch of 
their lives.' The Indians bore the pain without a murmur, and within a 
week the whole tribe left for Guatemala, and with them all who knew the 
location of the placer. To this day it has not been revealed." 



FEOM PUEBLA TO TLASCALA, 



389 



From Puebla our friends went to Tlascala, which is interesting on 
account of its connection with the Conquest of Mexico by Cortez. Ac- 
cording to history and legend, it was an important city when Cortez landed 
at Yera Cruz ; now it has barely 4000 inhabitants, and the greater part of 
its public buildings have disappeared. When Montezuma learned of the 
approach of Cortez he asked permission to send ambassadors to him through 
Tlascala, which was then at war with the Mexicans ; the crafty TIascalans 
gave the desired permission, but at the same time despatched an embassy 
to negotiate an alliance with the Spaniards, and join hands with them in 
subjugating the Mexicans. Of course this was exactly what Cortez wished, 
and the treaty was made before Montezuma could be heard from. 




INTERIOR OF AN OLD CHURCH. 



"We went by the morning train towards Apizaco," said Fred, "and 
stopped at the station of Santa Anna, nineteen miles from Puebla. There 
we found a tram-car, which carried us to our destination, three or four 
miles from the line of the railway. It took us through the curious and 
sleepy little town of Santa Anna, where not even the dogs showed any 
signs of activity, with the exception of one that was biting a flea. Then 



390 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



we passed some mined churches, went at full speed into the valley of the 
Attoyac, passed another town whose name I've forgotten, and pulled up 
at Tlascala in front of the hotel where we expected to have breakfast 
and pass the night. It was not a prejDOSsessing hotel, but we thought it 

might be endured for our brief 
stay; the result was better than 
we anticipated, as the food, thor- 
oughly Mexican, proved tooth- 
some, and the beds were hard 
enough to get us up early in the 
morning without any summons 
from a night porter. 

" The State Legislature was in 
session, for Tlascala is the capital 
of the State of the same name, 
which happens to be the smallest 
commonwealth of the Mexican 
union. "We looked in upon the 
meeting and found the members 
seated in two rows, facing each 
other; there were eight of them, 
and all were smoking as uncon- 
cernedly as though in their own 
homes. Doctor Bronson told us 
that smoking is permissible at all 
times in the Mexican Congress, 
and therefore the State Legislatures only follow the example which is set 
by the higher body. At one end of the hall is a railing which shuts off. 
a space for the President and his secretaries, and close by the rail there 
is a tribune where the members stand when making speeches. 

" After looking at the Legislature and listening for a few minutes to 
a discussion relative to an appropriation for making a road from some- 
where to somewhere else, we looked at tlie curiosities in the Legislative 
building, which seems to be quite a museum in its way. They showed 
us the banner which Cortez carried in his conquest of Mexico, and after- 
wards presented to the Tlascalans in acknowledgment of the great serv- 
ices they had rendered him. It is about ten feet long and forked, or 
' swallow-tailed,' at the end ; the fine and heavy silk of which it is made 
was once a beautiful crimson ; but it lias faded to the complexion of a 
decoction of badly made coffee ; and the tassels and cords are somewhat 




FIRST CHRISTIAN PULPIT IN AMERICA. 



EELICS OF THE CONQUEST. 



391 



frayed and worn. Considerable sums of money have been offered for 
this banner on behalf of Spain, but the Tlascalans have ref nsed all propo- 
sitions for its sale. We saw also the grant of arms to the city signed by 
Charles Y. of Spain, and the city charter bearing the signature of Philip 
II. and dated at Barcelona, May 10, 1585. 

" There is a mass of official documents, all of great age, that we had no 
time to examine, but which would be of great interest to a student of 
Mexican history. They showed us the treasure chest, which had four 
locks; and it was explained that anciently the city was ruled by four 
chiefs, each of whom had a key to one of the locks. Each of these chiefs 
had a palace of his own, and when the Spaniards came they destroyed the 
palaces and erected churches upon their sites. Time is destroying the 
churches, and only their ruins remain to show where the palaces were. 

" One of the documents preserved here is the Spanish translation of 
an order commanding that 80,000 picked men should march with Cortez 
against Mexico. Cortez personally gave orders for the translation of 
this historic paper. In the same voom is the war-drum of the Tlascalans — 
a hollow log two and a half feet long and six or 
eight inches in thickness, and covered with curi- 
ous carvings. 

" The object of greatest interest to us was 
the first Christian church and the first Christian 
pulpit erected on American soil. They told us 
that the structure now standing is the original 
one built by order of Cortez ; it is in good pres- 
ervation, and evidently has been well cared for. 
On the pulpit is an inscription wliich relates 
that the church was the first erected in ' IN^ew 
Spain.' ISTot far from the pulpit is the font in 
which the four chiefs of Tlascala were baptized 

in 1520 ; it is cut from a single block of black lava, resembles a huge bowl, 
and is of very creditable workmanship. The portraits of these four chiefs 
are preserved in the Legislative building, and each of them has ' Senor 
Don ' prefixed to his Indian name ; other portraits are in the same build- 
ing, and there are many paintings in the church, but few that we saw pos- 
sess any merit beyond -that of an ordinary tavern-sign. 

" While we were strolling about the town," continued Fred, " we saw 
some Indians coming in from the mountains with logs of wood which 
were to be cut into planks, and beams already shaped and finished. We 
judged that these timbers weighed not less than 400 pounds apiece, and 




OLD BAPTISMAL FONT, TLASCALA. 



392 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



some of them little, if any, below 500 pounds. They carried these timbers 
as they carry most other burdens, slung over their backs and supported 
by straps crossing their foreheads. These are the descendants of the 
people that carried over the mountains the timber for the brigantines of 
Cortez which he launched on Lake Tezcoco and used for the reduction 
of Tenochtitlan. We examined a beam that one of the carriers had 




ANCIENT BELLS. 



placed on the ground, and found it to be of hard pine, twenty feet long, 
ten inches wide, and six inches thick. You may make your own calcula- 
tion as to its weight if you think our estimates too high. 

"There are several old churches in Tlascala in addition to the one 
we have mentioned, and we visited some of them more to pass away the 
time than with the expectation of finding anything of interest. 

" In the afternoon we went to the shrine of Ocatlan, which is on a hill 
a mile or more from the grand plaza. This, we learned, was similar to 
the church of Guadalupe near the capital, as it commemorates the miracu- 
lous appearance of the Yirgin to a poor, ignorant, but benevolent Indian 
named Juan Diego, in the years not long after the Conquest. The shrine 
is mostly of modern construction, and is greatly revered by the Indians, 
who come here in large numbers from all the surrounding country." 

The party spent the night at Tlascala and left the place in season to 



"MOUTH OF THE MOUNTAIN." 393 

connect witli the train from Puebla, which meets the downward train at 
Apizaco from Mexico for Yera Cruz. Their trunks went by the train of 
the previous day, and were waiting for them in care of the Apizaco sta- 
tion-master. They had an abundance of time for breakfast at the junc- 
tion ; the through trains stop there twenty minutes for meals, and our 
travellers arrived fully a quarter of an hour in advance of the train by 
which they M^ere to depart. 

Apizaco is eighty-six miles from the city of Mexico. For the next 
sixty miles of the journey there was nothing of special interest along the 
route, which traverses the table-land at an elevation of nearly 8000 feet 
above the sea. The highest point on the line is at the siding of Ococotlan, 
between the stations of Guadalupe and Soltepec, where the elevation is 
8333 feet. At Esperanza, near the edge of the great plateau, 152 miles 
from Mexico City, the barometer shows a height of 7900 feet. Here 
they met the up-train from Yera Cruz, which had left that city at 5.30 
A.M., and was due in the capital at 7.30 p.m. 

Just beyond Esperanza the train reached Boca del Monte, or "Mouth 
of the Mountain," and here began the descent to the tierra caliente. What 
our young friends saw in this descent will be told in the next chapter. 




,iM 



A NATIVK PLOUGHMAN. 



394 



THE BOY TKAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



CHAPTER XXY. 

DOWN THE CUMBRES.— A. MONSTER LOCOMOTIVE.— MALTRAT A.— EL BARRANCA 
DEL INFERNILLO.— IN THE TIERRA 7'£'J/Pi^Z)yl.— PEAK OF ORIZABA; HOW IT 
WAS ASCENDED.— AN OLD AND QUAINT TOWN.— EXCURSIONS IN THE ENVIRONS 
OF ORIZABA.— FALLS OF THE RINCON GRANDE.— MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES.— 
CERRO DEL BORREGO.— THE MEXICAN ARMY ROUTED.— CORDOBA.— HOW TO 
RUN A COFFEE PLANTATION.— BARRANCA OF METLAC— PASO DEL MACHO.— 
TIERRA CALIENTE.—DWi LANDS NEAR THE SEA-COAST.— VERA CRUZ.— ZOPL 
LOTES AND THEIR USES.— YELLOW FEVER ; ITS SEASONS AND PECULIARITIES. 
—NORTHERS AND THEIR BENEFITS. 

^'^HE plateau terminates suddenly at Boca del Monte, and here begins 
-■- the descent of the cumhres. At Esperanza the train exchanged the 
ordinary locomotive for a monster one of great power ; it looked like two 
locomotives placed end to end with a tender between them, and was spe- 
cially built to take the trains over the 
extraordinary grades on this part of 
the road. High speed was out of the 
question, or at all events dangerous, 
and in descending the slope the train 
moved not faster than fifteen miles an 
hour. The schedule time of the as- 
cent is twelve miles an hour, and the 
Brobdingnagian locomotive is taxed to 
the utmost of its ability. 

Frank learned from one of the of- 
ficials of the road that there are no 
fewer than 148 bridges between Yera 
Cruz and Mexico, and on the branch 
to Puebla. These bridges are of va- 
rious lengths, the longest being the 
Puente de Soledad, which measures 
742 feet. The longest of the tunnels is 350 feet, and there are fifteen 
tunnels in all. 

" IS'o where else in the world," wrote Frank, " have we seen finer engi- 
neering work than on this railway. It reminded us of the railway from 




THE "PORTALES, OR COVERED WALKS. 



A PICTUKESQUE ROUTE. 



395 



Bombay to Poonah 
in India, the line 
from Colombo to 
Kandy in Ceylon, 
and tlie Saint Got- 
liard and Semmer- 
ing railways in the 
Alps. We looked 
down from dizzy 
heights where the 
train would have fe 
been ground to ° 

atoms had it rolled t 

171 

from the track into ^ 
the abysses below ; w 
we crept along the I 
edges of precipices, S 
or in niches cut in § 
perpendicular walls o 
of rock ; we crossed | 
deep chasms upon s 
slender bridges ; we o 
darted into tunnels '^ 
in rapid succession, g 
and swept around 9 
curves so sharp that ?^ 
it seemed as though 
the brakeman on 
the rear of the train 
might have shaken 
hands with the en- 
gine-driver. We 
looked into the 
beautiful Yalley of 
Maltrata, which lay 
spread far below us, 

a gem of floral and arboreal beauty among the rugged hills ; and we wound 
and turned among the sinuosities of the track so that our locomotive 
faced to all points of the compass a dozen times over in a single hour. In 
a direct distance of two and a half miles, as the bird flies, the railway goes 




396 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

twenty miles ; looking down, we saw the track far beneath our level, and 
looking up we could trac^ its zigzags along the slopes and precipices. It 
was the railway passage of the Alps, the Caucasus, the Sierra Nevadas, the 
Indian Ghauts, and the Blue Mountains of Australia all in one. 

" We stopped a few minutes at the station of Maltrata, which is on an 
artificial platform that was built up from the slope ; it was originally in- 
tended as a passing-point for the up and down trains, and for several years 
after the completion of the line the daily trains each way met at Maltrata. 
From this point onward the descent w^as as rapid as before ; the locomo- 
tive held the train back instead of pulling it, and the brakes kept up a 
continual grinding against the wheels. We shuddered to think what 
would have been the result if the brakes had given way and the locomo- 
tive failed to restrain us. But in such an event our agony would have been 
brief, as the whole business would have been ended in a few minutes. 
They told us that once when a freight train was climbing the mountain 
two of the rear wagons became detached and started down the slope. 
Fortunately there was no one on these wagons to lose his life ; they jumped 
the track at one of the curves, and were dashed a thousand feet or more 
down a steep hill-side into a rocky valley. 

"A little distance below, Maltrata we skirted one side of the Barranca 
del Infernillo, a great chasm which made our heads swim as we looked 
into it. Twelve miles from Maltrata we reached Orizaba, where we had 
arranged to spend a day, and therefore we left the train as it drew up at 
the station. 

" We observed a change in the vegetation as we descended the slope ; 
we had left the tierrafria behind us, and were now in the tierra tera- 
jplada^ or temperate region. The maguey and cactus gave way to darker 
and richer verdure, which was certainly far more pleasing to the eye than 
the scanty vegetation of the great plateau. Orizaba is 4000 feet above 
sea-level, 181 miles from the capital of the republic, and eighty-two from 
Yera Cruz. It has 20,000 inhabitants, and is a favorite resort of the peo- 
ple of Vera Cruz in the hot and sickly season. 

"We expected to have a fine view of the peak of Orizaba from the 
town of the same name ; but in this we were disappointed, as there is no 
part of the great volcano visible from here, except a thin strip of white 
over the top of a nearer and lower mountain ; even this strip cannot be 
seen from all parts of the town, but only by climbing to the roof of the 
hotel or the tower of one of the churches. 

" Doctor Bronson asked if we wished to ascend the peak of Orizaba ; 
we gave a prompt negative to his question, partly for the reason that his 



THE ASCENT OF OEIZABA. 



397 



plans would not permit us to stay here long enough, and partly because 
the sensation was pretty well exhausted at Popocatepetl. The ascent is 
quite as difficult as that of Old Popo ; Orizaba is a beautiful peak, shaped 
like a sugar-loaf, and wearing constantly a mantle of purest snow upon its 
regular and beautiful cone. According to Humboldt, it is 17,378 feet 
high ; a party of American officers ascended it in 1848 ; three years later 




DOUBLE-ENDER LOCOMOTIVE ON MEXICAN RAILWAY. 



a Frenchman named Doignon followed their example, and found the flag- 
staff they left there, with the torn fragments of the American flag which 
marked their visit. 

" There was a town here at the time of the Conquest, and Cortez left 
a small garrison to hold it when he pushed on to Mexico. It has an agree- 
able climate, the frequent rains and the mists from the Gulf keeping it 
well moistened, so that the trees, plants, and green things generally are in 
a high state of luxuriance. Coffee and tobacco are grown here in large 
quantities. The town has quite a manufacturing industry, and contains 
the repair and construction shops of the railway company. We greatly 
enjoyed a stroll through the streets, which seemed rather dull and sleepy 



398 



THE BOY TKAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



after those of the capital. Most of the houses are covered with red tiles, 
which give the city a very picturesque appearance when it is looked upon 
from the heights surrounding it. Like all old towns of Mexico, it has. an 
abundant supply of churches, and the inhabitants .are mostly of the Catho- 
lic faith. ISfot many years ago it was unsafe for a Protestant woman to 




VIEW OP ORIZABA. 



appear on the streets wearing a hat or bonnet of foreign make ; she was 
liable to be pelted with mud and stones, and her life was by no means out 
of danger. A milder feeling prevails at present, and the old bigotry is 
steadily passing away. 

"We made a pleasant excursion in the environs of the city, which. are 
very attractive, owing to the luxuriance of the vegetation. Fields of 
coffee, tobacco, sugar-cane, oranges, and bananas alternate with each other 
and show the mildness of the climate of Orizaba ; some of the plantations 
are of great extent, and we received many invitations to make a leisurely 
visit and spend whatever time we liked in their examination. 

" One of the sights of the place which we were told not to omit were 
the falls of the E-incon Grande, about three miles from the city. We did 



FALLS OF THE EINCON GEANDE. 



399 



not omit the falls, and will always hold them in pleasant recollection. 
The Rio de Agua Blanco, which supplies the water for the falls, is a deep 
and swift stream coming from the mountains to the eastward of Orizaba. 
Much of its course is through a deep canon ;. but where the falls begin, a 
part of the river flows along the surface of the mesa which forms one 
side of the ravine, and breaks over the side to join the main stream below. 




THE RIVER AT ORIZABA. 



"The fall is perhaps fifty feet from top to bottom, and a cloud of 
mist rises like that from Niagara or Montmorency. Both sides of the 
fall are bordered with a luxuriance of tropical verdure, rendered especially 
luxuriant by the moisture from the plunging waters. The trees are cov- 
ered with bunches of Spanish moss, some of them several feet in length, 



400 THE BOY TRAVELLEES IN MEXICO. 

and bj numerous parasitical plants, nearly all gaudy with flowers. Some 
of the trees are so completely in the grasp of the parasites that hardly 
anything of the original trunk or limbs can be seen. They showed us 
one tree that had been killed by the parasites ; the wood had decayed and 
crumbled, and the vines w-ere so thick where it had stood that they re- 
mained erect as though unaware that their former support had passed 
away. 

" We saw the falls from above and also from below ; and while both 
views were interesting, each had an especial beauty of its own. The 
shrubbery was so dense that we could walk only in the patlis that had 
been cut for the purpose ; and the growth of vegetation is so rapid that 
these paths require to be trimmed out several times a year. There is no 
possibility of straying from the path, for the simple reason that it is im- 
possible to proceed in the dense undergrowth except by the aid of a 
'machete. Though at an elevation of 4000 feet above the sea, Orizaba has 
a tropical climate ; its location places it in the tierra templada, but its 
temperature and characteristics would seem to include it in the tierra 
caliente. And not only its temperature but its mosquitoes give it a trop- 
ical character, as they are of the kind with which the traveller in equato- 
rial regions has a disagreeable familiarity. • 

"There's a pretty river flowing through Orizaba, and it is useful to the 
inhabitants in many ways. When we saw it there was not much water 
in its bed, but they tell us that at some periods it is a rushing torrent of 
great force and volume. It turns several mills, and is the resort of the 
women whose dutj'^ it is to cleanse the soiled linen of the rest of the 
inhabitants. Laundry-work here is about as it is in the rest of Mexico, 
and the rough handling of shirts and other garments by the lavanderas 
converts them into rags in a very short time. This is good for the cotton- 
factories of Orizaba, which turn out a fair quality of goods, but are said 
to be unprofitable for their owners. We have Ijetter reports of the flour- 
ing-mills here, and also of a paper-mill which was established by an 
American several years ago. As the Mexicans become better educated 
the demand for paper is likely to increase ; at present it does not take a 
large number of mills to supply their wants in this respect. 

" The people of this city are less eager to point out the hill of El 
Borrego than are the Pueblans to indicate the scene of the battle of 
Cinco de Mayo. The latter was a Mexican victory, while the battle of 
Borrego was a disastrous defeat. Four or five thousand Mexicans were 
surprised and put to flight by a few hundred French troops. The French 
say there were not over one hundred in the attacking party. It was a 



HOW A MEXICAN ARMY WAS DEFEATED. 



401 



night surprise, aud the French had all the advantages of a nocturnal 
assault. In justice to the Mexicans it should be added that the assailants 
wei'e old soldiers, while the surprised army was composed of raw recruits, 
who are proverbially easy to throw into a panic, especially in the darkness. 
The same troops made a good record for themselves later in the war. 




HILL OF EL BORREGO. 



From Orizaba our friends continued their railway journey into the 
tierra caliente, passing Fortin and Cordoba, the latter the centre of a 
coffee-growing district of considerable importance. A German gentleman 
who had a coffee estate near Cordoba was in the carriage with Doctor 
Bronson and the youths, and gave them some account of the industry ; 
26 



402 



THE BOY TEAVELLEKS IN MEXICO. 



Fred made notes of his remarks, and afterwards wrote tliem out in full, 
with the following result : 

" Cordoba is less important now than it has been, owing to the decline 
in the prices of sugar and coffee ; it was founded in the early part of the 
seventeenth century, and for a long time its industries were the growing 
of sugar-cane and tobacco. Coffee is a comparatively recent introduction ; 




ORANGE GROVE IN CORDOBA. 



we produce annually in the Cordoba district about 10,000,000 pounds of 
coffee, and five times as much tobacco, and our coffee and tobacco have a 
high reputation in the market. Coffee grows in the lower regions of Mex- 
ico, and up to elevations of four, or even five, thousand feet ; the best site 
for a plantation is about 3000 feet above sea-level ; but it must be remem- 
bered that the coffee-tree requires a great deal of moisture, and unless a 
region is warm and wet it will not answer for a successful experiment." 

Frank asked how soon after a plantation was started the trees would 
begin to bear. 

The gentleman replied that he had seen coffee-trees bearing two years 
after they were planted, and it was very common to gather fair crops from 



COFFEE CULTURE NEAE COKDOBA. 



403 



trees three years old. But they could not be relied upon for a profitable 
yield until they were four or five years old, and they continue to bear for 
twenty years. When a plantation is five years old it does not cost much 
to keep it up, but before that time it is a heavy outlay, with little or slight 
return. 

"You may grow tobacco or bananas between the young coffee-trees 
when you set them out," he continued, " and the profit from these prod- 
ucts will cover a part of your expenses. In fact you should set out enough 



Am 



■v. 




COFFEE-DRYING. 



bananas or plantains to shelter the young plants, which are liable to be in- 
jured by the sun and rain and wind in their infancy. The coffee-tree 
would grow to a height of twenty or twenty-five feet if we permitted it to 
do so ; we cut it off about six feet from the ground, and thus force the 



404 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

vigor into the branches ; we want it low enough to pick from without too 
much reaching or climbing, and this would not be the case if we allowed 
the tree to run up as it would naturally." 

Then he gave the youths an account of the harvesting of the crop, and 
its preparation for market, but as this has already been described else- 
where* Fred did not make a record of it. The culture of coffee is pretty 
nearly the same all the world over wherever the plant is grown. 

The conversation with the coffee-grower had not prevented our friends 
from observing the scenery which lies between Orizaba and Cordoba along 
the line of the railway. They were especially impressed with the engi- 
neering which was required for crossing the barranca of Metlac ; this bar- 
ranca is about 200 feet deep, by twice that width, and the first thought of 
the engineers was to throw a bridge directly across it. A bridge of a sin- 
gle span of 400 feet would be very costly, and piers 200 feet in height to 
sujDport a lighter structure could not be built without great expense. Con- 
sequently the plan was adopted of descending to where the barranca is less 
wide and high before attempting to span it. 

" The bridge," wrote Frank, " is on eight piers of iron, resting on ma- 
sonry, and it curves in its course from one side of the barranca to the 
other on a radius of 325 feet. It is 400 feet long and 92 feet high ; the 
railway is cut into the slope of the barranca on each side, and as it nears 
the bridge it enters a tunnel that curves so as to give the necessary ap- 
proach. The incline of the railway on each side of the barranca is about 
three feet in a hundred, and for quite a distance the opposite tracks are 
almost parallel to each other. The sides of the barranca are covered with 
a dense growth of tropical trees and underbrush, and the picture it pre- 
sents is very attractive to the traveller, however disheartening it may have 
been to the men who planned the railway. Many a railway engineer in 
Mexico has regretted that barrancas were ever invented, and, on the other 
hand, has congratulated himself that their number is no larger than it is." 
From Cordoba to Paso del Macho the fine scenery continued, the train 
winding among hills and mountains, disappearing into tunnels, crossing 
deep valleys upon graceful bridges, and steadily unfolding a panorama of 
great beauty. Frank made note of the bridge of Attoyac, 330 feet long . 
the Chiquilmite bridge, 220 feet long ; and that of San Alego, three miles 
before reaching Paso del Macho, which is 318 feet long. In twenty miles 
there was a descent of 1200 feet, and the scenery steadily assumed moi'e 
and more a tropical aspect. 



See " The Boy Travellers in Ceylon and India," chap. xix. 



IN THE HOT EEGION. 



405 



But beyond Paso del Maclio the country clianged again and grew ster- 
ile, as thougli they were once more in the region of the tierrafria. 

" How is this ?" queried Fred. " Here we are coming all the time 
nearer the sea both in elevation and distance ; I thought we should have 
it a perfect forest of tropical growths all the way to Vera Cruz." 




BRIDGE 01' ATTOYAU. 



"Those who liave studied the subject," answered the Doctor, "say that 
til is strip of land along the coast is not touched by the moist vapors which 
blow inland from the sea. They are attracted by the mountains and high- 
lands, and blow over this region to shed their moisture at a greater ele- 
vation." 

Evidently the youths were disappointed, but they consoled themselves 
with the reflection that they were not intending to settle in the countr}^, 
and therefore it didn't matter much to them what it was. Paso del Macho 
is about 1500 feet above sea-level, and forty-seven miles from Vera Cruz. 
The slope of the land from here onward is regular, and no unusual engi- 
neering skill was required for the construction of the railway. Fred noted 
the names of four stations, Camaron, Soledad, Purga, and Tejeria, before 



406 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




IN TIERRA CALIENTE. 



they reached Vera Cruz; but there was nothing attraetire abont an, of 
those places to render them worthy of further record. Histonca ly Sol- 
edad is memorable as the scene of the convention between generals Pnm 



MEXICO'S GREAT SEAPORT. 



407 




408 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

and Doblado in 1862, wliicli led to the occupation of tlie conntrj by the 
French troops and the invitation to Maximilian to become Emperor of 
Mexico. Fred asked if there was any monument at Soledad to commem- 
orate the event, and was not at all surprised at receiving a negative an- 
swer. 

Night had fallen when they rolled into the station at Yera Cruz. 
Fred watched for the fortifications, of which he had read so much, and 
was disappointed to learn that they had followed the fate of the walls of 
most European cities and been levelled out of existence. Modern artillery 
lias rendered all defences of this kind of no value for military purposes, 
and it is an act of common-sense to destroy them and make j)ractical use 
of the ground they occupy. 

The air was close and warm and offered no inducements for a stroll. 
By the time our friends had located themselves at the Hotel de Diligen- 
cias, which was said to be the princijjal one, and partaken of a not very 
appetizing supper, they had more thoughts of bed than of anything else. 

Next morning the youths were out in good season for the local sights. 
The first objects of interest were the zopilotes^ or vultures, that act as a 
street-cleaning bureau, in taking possession of everything edible (from 
their point of view) in the refuse of the streets. Frank and Fred had 
seen these birds before on many occasions, but never in such numbers ; 
they are analogous to the turkey-buzzards of the Southern States of North 
America, and are said to be scientifically of the genus Cathartes. They 
roosted on the house-tops, and walked through the streets, constantly on 
the lookout for something in their line. They are protected by law, and 
are faithful scavengers, working without pay other than board and lodg- 
ing. They lodge in the open air, and board upon what no other living 
creature would eat, so that they are inexpensive luxuries. They have 
never been charged, like street-cleaning bureaus elsewhere, with obtaining 
money under fraudulent contra;cts. 

" The streets were quiet," wrote Fred, " and we were not surprised to 
learn that the population of Vera Cruz is under 20,000 and not partic- 
ularly prosperous, although for a long time nine-tenths of the foreign 
commerce of the country passed through this port. Since the railways 
from the United States were opened to the capital the trade of the city 
has greatly declined. Most of the business is in the hands of foreigners, 
so that the chief connection a Mexican has with it is to handle the goods 
as they are transferred from ship to railway or warehouse. The streets 
are straight and mostly narrow, and the open drains require to be con- 
stantly flushed, to keep down the stenches and unhealthy miasmas. In 



YELLOW-FEVEE AT VERA CRUZ. 



409 



the sickly season the drains are nightly supplied with disinfectants to 
keep off that dreaded scourge the vomito, or yellow-fever. 

" We had heard much of the unhealthiness of Yera Crnz, and particu- 
larly of the vomito, which sometimes carries off hundreds of victims in a 
single week, and makes the road to the cemetery the best travelled one in 
the whole city. Forty or fifty deaths a day are by no means uncommon ; 
the old inhabitants do not seem to mind it, as they claim that a person 
who has once had the fever is ever after safe from it. A few years ago 
Dr. Trowbridge, the American Consul, was removed from the office 
which he had held for twelve years; his successor arrived during the 
prevalence of yellow-fever, and died on the thirteenth day of his occupa- 
tion of his new place. Dr. Trowbridge and his family had the fever 
lightly when they first arrived, and never afterwards suffered from it. 

" They tell us that yellow-fever is most dangerous in summer months, 
and least so in the winter. It is not advisable for a stranger to come here 
in the sickly season, and so well is this recognized that the betting men 
of Vera Crnz are said to make wa- 
gers as to the probable length of life 
of a visitor from Europe or ISTorth 
America when the vomito is prev- 
alent. A Yankee whom we met up- 
country says that when he came to 
Yera Cruz a polite individual called 
upon him at the hotel and solicited 
his patronage, ' which he was sure 
to need.' He did not feel very com- 
fortable on learning that the polite 
man was an undertaker, and fled 
from the city by first train. It used 
to be said that a life insurance pol- 
icy was vitiated if the holder remained more than twenty-four hours at 
Yera Cruz. 

" Yellow-fever is as dangerous for the Mexican from the table-lands 
as it is to the ]^orth American, and some authorities say that the stranger 
from over the sea is less liable to it than the Mexican from the tierra 
fria. It begins in May, is worst in August and September, and then 
declines to December, when it practically disappears under the influence 
of the strong 'northers' that blow during the autumn equinox. Were 
it not for these northers Yera Cruz would be altogether too unhealthy 
for human habitation. 




AFTER THE VOMITO. 



410 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



CHAPTER XXYI. 

THE ALAMEDA OF VERA CRUZ.— TROPICAL GROWTHS.— THE PALO DE LECHE AST) 
ITS PECULIARITIES. — A DANGEROUS PLANT. — FOUNTAINS AND WATER-CAR- 
RIERS.— GOVERNOR'S PALACE. — BRIEF HISTORY OF VERA CRUZ.— PILLAGED 
BY PIRATES AND CAPTURED IN WARS.— FORTRESS OF SAN JUAN DE ULLOA.— 
HORRORS OF A MEXICAN PRISON.— EXCURSION TO JALAPA.— THE NATIONAL 
BRIDGE.— CERRO GORDO.— GENERAL SCOTT'S VICTORY.— JALAPA.— A CITY OF 
MISTS.— STAPLE PRODUCTS OF THE REGION.— JALAP AND ITS QUALITIES.— 
PRETTY WOMEN.— PECULIARITIES OF THE STREETS.— ORIZABA AND PEROTE.— 
NEW RAILWAY CONNECTIONS.— TAMPICO AND ANTON LIZARDO.— DELAYED BY 
A NORTHER.— DEPARTURE BY STEAMER.— FAREWELL TO VERA CRUZ. 

'"r^HE walk of our young friends took tliem to the Alameda, wliicli 

-L proved unusually attractive, as it was filled with tropical plants and 

trees to which their eyes had not been accustomed in the upland region. 

They welcomed the palm-trees as old 
"^^^ friends; the palm does not floui'ish in 

V^-jT^ Mexico at a greater elevation than 

li --*-// % 1500 feet above the level of the sea 

"Vr^i \ excepting nnder peculiarly favorable 

circumstances. The palms of Yera 
Cruz are finely developed, but they 
do not attain the size of those at 
Medellin, twelve miles down the coast. 
J'/l/l^HHH^^^^^ Medellin is a summer resort of the 

IWlH^H^^^^W^^^s* Yeracruzanos ; they go there for. re- 
creation during; the hot season, or at 
least such of them as cannot afford 
the longer journey to Orizaba and the 
^^^^^^ -^^-^^^^^^^^^ mountain regions. 

___ ., .J. i^^^^^-- Many of the trees and bushes in 

^'^"^^ ^fe^aii^^^- ^YiQ Alameda were bright with flow- 

ers. As if there were not enough 

A COFFEE-CARRIER. ri i n • • • i . 

floral products growing m sight, sev- 
eral flower-sellers came around with their wares, which thej^ persistently 
offered to the visitors. Frank asked for the ^aZo de leche, but the flower- 




A POISONOUS PLANT. 411 

sellers did not have it, tliough one enterprising dealer endeavored to sub- 
stitute a common blossom in its place, with the gravest assurance that it 
was the article sought. 

" I haven't heard of that flower before," said Fred. " Why were you 
asking for it ?" 

" I read about it last night," was the reply, "and had a curiosity to see 
what it was like." 

" Well, w^hat did you read that was interesting ?" 

" The description said that the term jyalo de lecJie means simply * milky 
plant,' and is a23plied to several plants from whose stems a milky sub- 
stance exudes. We have the same kind of plant in the I^orth, such as 
the milk-weed and its kindred. There are many varieties of the palo de 
leche in Mexico, and they belong to the family of Eiqyhorbia. 

" One kind is used by the Indians for fishing ; they throw the leaves into 
• the water and the fishes are stupefied and rise to the surface, where they are 
easily taken before the effect of the narcotic has passed away. The same 
writer says that if the milk is thrown upon a fire it gives out fumes which 
produce nausea and severe headaches that often last for several hours. 
Taken internally, the milk of some of the Euphorbia is a deadly poison ; it 
will produce death or insanity, according to the size and preparation of the 
dose or the condition of the person to whom it is administered. There is 
a popular belief among the Mexicans that the insanity of the ex-Empress 
Carlotta was caused by this poison. While many deny this and point to 
the fact that she became insane after going to Europe, they admit that the 
palo de leche is to be feared when in the hands of unscrupulous persons. 
On the other hand, it is claimed that the Indians can so prepare and use 
the poison as to regulate the time at which it will cause death or insanity." 

" If that is the case," replied Fred, " it is no wonder that the flower- 
sellers do not deal in what you wanted. Perhaps it would not be alto- 
gether safe for a Mexican to ask for it, as he might be suspected of evil 
designs and bring the police nearer than would be comfortable." 

The subject of palo de leche was drojDped and the walk continued. 

At a fountain they saw quite a group of men and quadrupeds, and a 
glance showed that the same system of water supply prevails here as in 
most other cities of Mexico. Water is carried by the aguadores either on 
their own backs or on those of donkeys. An aguador who possesses a don- 
key is an aristocrat in his line of business, and looks down upon the poor 
wretch who is obliged to be his own beast of burden. The mule and don- 
key are important animals at Yera Cruz, and a good part of the carrying 
business is in their hands — or on their backs. 



412 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



Frank and Fred paused to look at the Governor's Palace, an imposing 
edifice of two stories with a high tower at one corner. There are wide 
balconies on each of the stories, where the occupants can sit in the shade 
and enjoy the cool breeze whenever it happens to blow. A di-awback to 




FOUNTAIN AT VERA CRUZ. 



sitting there is the presence of the mosquitoes, which fill all the space 
not taken up by the Governor and his household. Not only do the inhabi- 
tants of Yera Cruz maintain a constant warfare with mosquitoes, but they 
associate intimately with fleas, ticks, and other bodily annoyances. Official 
station offers no exemption ; the insect pests are indiscriminate in their 
attentions, and light on the brow of the Governor or the general in com- 
mand of the post just as readily as on that of the humblest peon. If 
there is any difference it is in favor of the peon, as his tougher skin ren- 
ders him less inviting to the diminutive assailants. 

" Vera Cruz has had an interesting history," wrote Fred in his journal. 
"It was founded by Cortez in 1519, who gave it the name of Villa Rica 
de la Vera Cruz (the rich city of the true cross). The original site was 
a little north of the present one, and altogether the location of the city 



SHORT HISTORY OF VERA CRUZ. 



4ia 



has been changed three times. The last change occurred in the year 1600, 
and brought it to where the first buildings were erected by the Spaniards 
before Cortez made the formal location of what he intended as the mari- 
time metropolis- of the New World. 

" TJie city lias suffered in a great many ways. Leaving out the annual 
visitation of j^ellow-fever, which we have already mentioned, it has had oc- 
casion to mourn the advent of buccaneers, pirates, hostile fleets and armies, 
and occasional conflagrations and hurricanes. In 1568, and again in 1683, 
it was sacked by pirates, and many of its inhabitants were killed. In 1618 
it was nearly burned to the ground by a fire that broke out during a north- 
erly gale. In 1822 and 1823 it was bombarded by the Spaniards, who held 
the Castle of San Juan de Ulloa, on the island opposite the city, in the 
struggle of the Mexicans for independence. In 1838 it was bombarded by 
the French, and nine years later by the Americans. The latter captured 
it by coming ashore on the beach some distance below the city and attack- 
ing it from the land side, so that the surrender was rendered imperative. 
Some of the Mexicans complained that General Scott did not 'fight fair,' 
as he made his attack where they were least prepared for defence. Evi- 




THE GOYERNOR S PALACE. 



414 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



dentlj they expected him to march up to the muzzles of tlieir guns in- 
stead of going around to the undefended rear of the city as he did. 

" The shipping in the harbor was destroyed by a hurricane in 1856, 
and it has suffered serious damage in other years. President Juarez was 
besieged here in 1859 by General Miramon ; two years later the city was 
taken by the French and Imperialists, and remained in their hands until 
1867, when the death of Maximilian and the collapse of the Empire 
restored it to Mexican possession." 

After breakfast the party arranged to visit the fortress which stands 
on the island of San Juan, already mentioned. At the mole, or pier, the 
only one of which Yera Cruz can boast, they hired a boat in which they 




were rowed to the fort ; the distance is nearly a mile, and our friends were 
easily able to understand the unsafe character of the harbor of Yera Cruz. 
It is little better than an open roadstead ; when high winds prevail land- 
ing from or embarking upon a steamer is impossible, and during heavy 
northers steamers sometimes put to sea for safety. There are no docks 
where vessels can lie ; everything must be discharged or received by 
boats or lighters, and the uncertainties of the weather make the time of 
a steamer's departure very uncertain. The dangerous character of the 
harbor is said to cause the insurance companies to increase their rates 
when Yera Cruz is given as a vessel's destination. 

" The fort is a grim-looking place," said Frank ; " its walls are thick 
enough to justify the belief of its builders that it was impregnable. What- 
ever it may have been in ancient times, it is not of much consequence at 



VISIXmG THE FORTRESS. 415 

present, and short work would be made of it by modern artillery. No 
attempt is made to keep it in condition to resist a determined attack, all 
the cannon which it possesses being of ancient date ; many of these can- 
non would be quite as dangerous to the garrison as to the enemy in case 
they were discharged. The story goes that it cost so much to build the 
fort that the King of Spain once called for a telescope, and pointed it at 
the west. 

" ' For what is your Majesty looking V inquired one of his officers of 
state. 

" ' I am looking for San Juan de Ulloa,' he answered ; ' 1 have spent 
so much money on it that I ought to see the fort standing out on the 
western sky.' 

" Our guide pointed out some great rings of copper that were built 
into the wall of the fortress on the face next to the city. These rings 
were intended for ships to tie to under protection of the guns, but in the 
past two hundred years the water has become so shoal that only a small 
boat can come near enough to make any use of the fastenings. There are 
large court-yards inside the fort, where a whole regiment could parade, 
and the casemates are sufficiently capacious to hold a garrison six times 
as large as the Government keeps here. Parts of the walls are broken 
down, and no effort is made to keep them in repair. The chief use of 
the once celebrated fort is as a prison ; they told us that about sixty or 
seventy ;prisoners were kept there, some of them being sentenced for life. 
We looked into some of the vacant dungeons, and thought them the most 
horrible places of imprisonment we had ever seen. They are badly venti- 
lated, very little light can enter them, and the walls are damp and almost 
dripping with moisture. Escape is out of the question, as the water around 
the island swarms with sharks, and a prisoner who should attempt to get 
away by swimming to the shore would be eaten by these monsters of the 
sea." 

An excursion of a pleasanter character was made to the city of Jalapa 
(ha-Za-pa — a as in father) ; it should be called a journey rather than an 
excursion, as it consumed no less than three days. Jalapa is seventy-four 
miles from Yera Cruz and 4000 feet above the sea, and one of the pret- 
tiest places in Mexico. Our friends were obliged to rise at a very early 
hour, as the train starts at 5 a.m.; they went by steam for sixteen miles 
to Tejeria, and there changed to a tram-car, drawn by mules, for a ride of 
sixty miles. The old diligence-road between Yera Cruz and the capital 
passes through Jalapa, but it is not much used since the completion of 
the railway. 



416 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



General Scott marched bj that road, and the youtlis were on tlie watch 
for El Puente Nacional, or the National Bridge, where he was sharply 
resisted by the 'Mexican army. It is thirty -live miles from Yera Cruz, and 
is an immense viaduct, built in the early part of the present century, when 
the road to the capital was begun. In the happy days of brigandage it 




THE NATIONAL BRIDGE. ROBBING A COACH. 



was the favorite spot for stopping coaches and plundering passengers ; 
many a traveller has given np his valuables at this spot, nnder the potent 
influence of a pistol in the hands of a Mexican " road-agent." 

" Sixty miles by mule-power was a long distance," said Fred, " and we 
wondered how it was to be accomplished. The mules went along at a 
good pace, considering that it was an ascending grade ; they were urged 
by the whip in the hands of the driver, and he was certainly not a merci- 
ful one, perhaps for the reason that the mules belonged to the railway 
company and not to himself. Part of our ride was through a compara- 
tively desert region, and we rejoiced that it was early in the morning 
while the sun was not high and hot. The train was composed of three 
cars ; each car had four mules for its motive power, and the vehicles were 
divided into first, second, and third class. First class fare is $6 63 ; second 
class, $4 08 ; and third class not far from $2 00. My memorandum for 



BATTLE-FIELD OF CERKO GORDO. 



417 



third class is so blurred that I cannot make the figures out to a certainty. 
The mules were, changed every two hours, and seemed very well satisfied 
when tlieir terras of service were ended. 

"We stopped at Rinconada, where we breakfasted, and changed mules 
for the second time, the first change having been made at the National 
Bridge. The second station from Rinconada was Cerro Gordo, where 
General Scott defeated the Mexicans in 1847. It is a narrow pass bor- 
dered by high hills, and connects the lowlands of the coast with the re- 
gions of the tierra temjplada. How an army could get through the pass 
in the face of anything like determined and intelligent opposition by a 
force superior in numbers, it is difiicult to understand. An English writer 
who has visited the spot says of it as follows : 'That 10,000 Americans 
should have been able to get through the mountain passes, and to reach 
the capital at all, is an astonishing thing ; and after that, their successes in 
the Valley of Mexico follow as a matter of course. Tiiey could never 
have crossed the mountains but for a combination of circumstances.' 




SKETCHED AT RINCONADA. 



" After passing Cerro Gordo, in which we had no such difficulties as 
beset General Scott, we found ourselves in a less tropical region than the 
one behind us. Cornfields were numerous, and so were fields of barley ; 
that we had not left the region of warmth altogether was evident by the 

27 



418 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



sugar-cane and the coffee-trees that abounded in many places. Thej con- 
tinued up to and into Jalapa, whither our mules went at a gallop, and came 
to a halt about half-past four in the afternoon. Twelve hours for a jour- 
ney of seventy-four miles, up a slope of 4000 feet, and sixty miles of the 
distance by mule-power, isn't so bad after all. 

" There was a drawback to the interest of the scene in the shape of a 
cloud of mist in which we were enveloped as we entered the city ; but the 
wind swept it away and we had some beautiful views; then it came on 







• If"**. 



te . 




-- -^ 








PART OF JALAPA. 



again, to our aggravation, and in fact it kept up a sort of peep-show per- 
formance all the time we were there. They told us that a good deal of 
rain falls at Jalapa, and when there is no rain there is generally a mist of 
more or less density. We were reminded of Ireland and Scotland, and in 
more ways than one; the mists that obstruct the view 'are the glory of 
Jalapa in keeping everything green, even to our memory of it. It does 
not rain, nor is the sky obscured all the time, else there would be no ripen- 
ing of fruit in the gardens ; and the gardens of Jalapa are among the 
finest in the world. 

" The great staple of Jalapa is coffee, but there is a large product of 



PRETTY WOMEN AT JALAPA. 



419 



sugar ; and as for plantains, bananas, mangoes, and sim- 
ilar fruits, thej are to be had in abundance and for little 
more than the asking. We looked for that old-fashioned 
drastic medicine, jalap, which takes its name from the 
citj'-, but were told it is no longer exclusively produced 
here. Doctor Bronson sajs the drug was introduced into 
England from Mexico in 1609, and was in use for 200 
years before the plant from which it came was known. 
It belongs to the same family as the ' f our-o'-clock ' 
of our gardens, and grows wild in the mountains 
in the neighborhood of Jalapa. 
As this city was then the centre 
of commerce in this article, the 
name adhered to it, just as the 
name of Calicut adhered to the 
cloth called calico, which orig- 
inally came from that town of 
India. 

"Another staple for which 
Jalapa is famous is pretty 
women ; but so far as we have 
been able to observe, it has 
no monopoly of them against 
the other cities of Mexico. 
They have been praised by 
many travellers, and there is 
a Mexican saying that '■Las 
Jalajperias son muy lialagu- 
ehas ' (' the women of Jalapa 
are very charming.') We 
have seen many pretty faces, 
and if the weather had been 
uninterruptedly fine perhaps 
we could have seen more. 

" The streets resemble 
those of Spain more than 
do any we saw in Mexico, 
Puebla, or Vera Cruz ; they 
are narrow, crooked, and 
irregular, and separating a narrow street. 




420 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

solid old buildings with thick walls and heavily grated windows. The 
city has about 15,000 inhabitants, and there is said to have been an Ind- 
ian town here at the time of Cortez's arrival. The houses cling to tJie 
hill-side as though afraid of falling off, and there is a good deal of uphill 
and downhill in a walk through the streets ; in fact it seems to be uphill 
no matter which way you go. An excellent feature about the streets is 
their cleanliness. 

"Another vegetable product of the region around Jalapa is the vanilla, 
which was cultivated here long before the Conquest. The Indians had 
practically a monopoly of it at one time, but its cultivation has spread to 
other parts of Mexico and Central America, and also to distant countries. 
The best quality still comes from this part of Mexico, and the Indians 
show great skill in harvesting and curing the pods. The drying of the 
pods takes a long time, and if any mistake is made in the process, it 
greatly injures the value of the product. 

" We had a fine view of the peak of Orizaba and the famous mountain 
of Perote, which, from its shape, is known as the cofre, or casket. At the 
base of this mountain is the town of Perote, which was famous during 
the Mexican War as the place where some Americans were imprisoned. 
Doctor Bronson says there was a novel of that time called ' The Prisoner 
of Perote,' which had a very large circulation. 

" Downhill is easier than uphill all the world over, and nowhere more 
so than on a tram-way. We started from Jalapa at seven in the morning, 
and went flying down the road, turning curves at a gallop, dashing on as 
though pursued by a Kemesis or a pack of wolves, and raising clouds of 
dust wherever the roads were dry. Our hair stood on end half the time — - 
figuratively at least; and I wished the mules could have told us what they 
thought of such recklessness. We breakfasted again at Rinconada, and at 
a little past four in the afternoon rolled into Yera Cruz." 

Jalapa is to be connected with Puebla and the cit}"^ of Mexico by the 
Interoceanic Pailway, perhaps before these words appear in print, as a 
part of the line is already built and work is being pushed on the re- 
mainder. As has been shown on previous pages, it is the intention to 
carry the railway through to the Pacific Ocean by making use of the line 
already completed from the capital to Morelos and Yautepec. Another 
Pacific line has been surveyed from Puebla through the State of Oajaca, 
and a part of the road has been built. 

On their return trip from Jalapa to Yera Cruz our friends made the 
acquaintance of a railway engineer who had been at work upon the line 
from Tampico westward. He was enthusiastic about the future of 



TAMPICO AND ITS HAEBOK. 



421 



Tampico, and predicted that when the railway had formed its connection 
with the [National and Central lines Vera Cruz would be "out in the 
cold," as he expressed it. " Tampico has," said he, " a harbor that can be 
greatly improved by dredging away a part of the bar, which is now dan- 
gerous ; the town is five miles up a river, and aifords the shelter which 
a ship cannot find at Y'era Cruz. With the dredging I mentioned, the 
jiort can be used by the same class of vessels that now go to Yera Cruz. 
Tampico will get all the business when the railway is completed and the 
line opened to the capital." 

Filled with the idea of the importance of Tampico and the ruin that 
awaited Yera Cruz, before leaving the latter city Frank had a conversa- 
tion with an advocate of another port of future importance. The new 




EXTERIOR OP A CHURCH. 



claimant for commercial favors was Anton Lizardo, which lies some dis- 
tance down the coast and was selected as the starting-point of the Mexi- 
can Southern Railway. It is claimed to be in a healthy locality, and to 
have a fairly good harbor capable of improvement by the use of the 
dredge and the construction of piers at which vessels may lie. General 
Grant was the President of the Mexican Southern Railway, and since his 
death the enterprise has languished, and our friends were unable to learn 
that it showed any positive signs of activity. 

It was Doctor Bronson's intention to leave Yera Cruz on the day 
following their return from Jalapa, but his plans were rudely upset by 
a norther, which set in furiously and for two days cut off all communi- 



422 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

cation with the ships in harbor or out of it. Frank and Fred climbed 
to the top of the highest tower they could find, and watched the waves 
breaking on the walls, and also on the long line of beach north and south 
of the city. At times the island of San Juan de Ulloa seemed to be half 
buried in the spray ; the ships rose and fell unpleasantly as they tugged 
at their anchors, and some of them took the course of prudence and 
steamed away seaward. Two or three small craft were torn from their 
moorings and driven ashore ; that similar accidents may befall larger 
vessels was painfully evidenced by an English steamer which lay high 
and dry on the beach, where she had been wrecked in a norther a few 
weeks before. 

But all things have an end, and so did the gale, which blew itself out 
after cleansing the city of all miasmatic impurities, and rendering it 
healthy for a while. The sea went down, and as soon as the steamer on 
which they were to leave had completed her cargo and was ready for sea, 
the travelling trio went on board. An hour later they were moving over 
the dark waters of the Gulf of Mexico, with their faces turned in the 
direction of the equator. 




:r.^^ 



ALONG THE COAST. 



423 



CHAPTER XXYIL 

THE COATZACOALCOS RIVER.— ISTHMUS OF TEHUANTEPEC— TEHUANTEPEC RAIL- 
WAY AND SHIP-CANAL.— THE EADS SHIP-RAILWAY.— AN IDEA OF CORTEZ.— 
PLANS OF CAPTAIN EADS.— A RAILWAY-CARRIAGE WITH 1200 WHEELS.— SHIPS 
CARRIED IN TANKS.— ENGINEERIN(t AND OTHER FEATURES OF THE SHIP-RAIL- 
WAY.— MAHOGANY TRADE.— FIFTEEN THOUSAND DOLLARS FOR THREE LOGS.— 
FRONTERA AND TABASCO.— RUINS OF PALENQUE.— LORILLARD CITY.— EXPLO- 
. RATIONS BY STEPHENS AND CHARNAY.— PALACE OF PALENQUE.— TEMPLE OF 
THE CROSS.— TEMPLE OF LORILLARD.— REMARKABLE IDOL.— A REGION ABOUND- 
ING IN RUINS.— REMAINS OF MITL A.— PILLAR OF DEATH. 

'T^HE steamer on which our friends were embarked was a small one 
-^ engaged in the coasting trade. She drew less than twelve feet of 
water, and was therefore able to enter the shallow harbors of some of the 
Mexican and Central American ports 
where large vessels cannot go. On 
the morning after leaving Yera Cruz 
she was off the mouth of the Coat- 
zacoalcos River, and a little after 
sunrise she crossed the bar and 
steamed slowly against the current 
of that tropical stream. 

Dense forests, broken here and 
there bj clearings, covered the banks 
of the river, and reminded our .young 
friends of the Menam River, in Siara, 
or the Me-Kong, in Cambodia. Thir- 
ty miles from the mouth of the river 
brought them to Minatitlan, a tum- 
ble-down village or town with a few 
hundred inhabitants, who are chiefly 
engaged in doing nothing, if one is 
to judge by appearances. The busi- 
ness of Minatitlan is not large, and 

is chiefly connected with trade in mahogany and other tropical woods. 
The river and the town have an international importance, as they are 




ON THE EITEK S BANK. 



424 



THE BOY TKAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




A STEAMSHIP ON A PLATFORM CAR. 



on the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, which has long been under consideration 
as the route for a canal to connect the Atlantic with the Pacific. The 
width of the isthmus from ocean to ocean is 143 miles, but by making use 
of the rivers on either side the length of a canal would be little, if any, 
more than 100 miles. The route has been surveyed at different times, 
notably in 1870, by Captain Shufeldt of the United States Navy, who 
declared that there was no insurmountable obstacle to the construction of 
a sliip-canal. 

Recently the Mexican Government has given to an English company 
a concession for a railwaj^ across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. One of 
the surveyors of this company was a passenger on the steamer with our 
friends, who fell into conversation with him during dinner, and learned 
many things of interest. The engineer told them that work was to begin 
immediately on the railway, and they hoped to have it completed by the 
end of 1889. 

Doctor Bronson recalled the fact that in 1842 a concession was granted 



SHIPS TO GO OVERLAND. 



425 



to Don Jose de Garaj for the Teliuantepec Railway, but nothing was ac- 
complished, for the simple reason that the money for the work could not 
be obtained. As soon as the Garay concession fell through, the United 
States Government offered $15,000,000 for the right of way across the 
Isthmus of Teliuantepec, but the offer was declined. During the Califor- 
nia gold excitement a Teliuantepec transit line was established. Steamers 
ran between the isthmus and San Francisco on the Pacific side, and to 
I^ew York and New Orleans on the Atlantic. Passengers were carried 
across the neck of land in stage-coaches. The enterprise proved unprofit- 
able, and was abandoned after a fev/ years. 

What interested Frank and Fred more than anything else at this point 
w^as the suggestion that huge ships might yet be transported across the 
isthmus, not by canal but on a railway. Their new-found friend told 





PLANE AND ELEVATION OF TERMINUS. 



them about the project of Capt. James B. Eads, an enterprising American 
engineer, and referred them for further information to an article in Hai^- 
pers Magazine for November, 1881. With their usual good-fortune they 
found a copy of the magazine in the hands of the purser of the steamer. 
Aided by it and the points given them by the engineer, together with 
some from Doctor Bronson, they wrote the following while the steamer 
was continuing her voyage from Minatitlan. 

"Any one who thinks the idea of a ship-railway here is a new one is 
grievously mistaken. It originated with no less a personage than the con- 
queror Cortez, who visited the isthmus, examined the river Coatzacoalcos, 



426 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



made soundings, and walked across from ocean to ocean, with a view to 
establishing a portage by which ships could be carried overland for the 
commerce between Spain and the far east of Asia. 

" Cortez reported favorably upon the enterprise, and suggested a broad 
road carefully graded by which ships could be transported on rollers or 
wheels from one ocean to the other. It must be remembered tliat the 




TANK CARRIAGE. 



ships of his day wei'e much smaller than those of the present time, and 
their transportation a hundred miles overland would not have been a very 
diflBcult matter. 

" Somehow the Spanish Government did not favor the proposal suffi- 
ciently to authorize the expenditure of the necessary cash. The matter 
slumbered until 1814, nearly 300 years, when the Government consented 
to the undertaking, but the revolution then going on prevented anything 
like actual work on the road. The Garay Railway concession in 1842 was 
the next project. Three canal concessions have since been made to Mexi- 
cans and one to Americans ; then came the concession to Captain Eads for 
a ship-railway, and last of all is the concession already mentioned for an 
ordinary railway to be built by an English company. 

"We will remark here that if concessions would build railwaj's Mex- 
ico would have been gridironed with them long before this. It is prob- 
able that two or three hundred concessions have been granted in the last 
ten years, and nine-tenths of them are not likely to go beyond the ' per- 
mission to build ' which the concession grants. 

"The idea of Captain Eads was that wherever a canal can be built 



A EAILWAY WITH TWELVE EAILS. 



427 



to float a ship a railway may be built to carry one. His theory was 
laughed at by a great many people, but has been accepted by eminent 
engineers all over the world who have carefully studied his plans. Like 
every novel scheme, it has met with much opposition, and many objections 
have been made to it ; but they are chiefly by men wdiose minds are not 
scientific. It should be borne in mind that the steam-railway, the steam- 
boat, the ocean steamship, the telegraph, in fact every great enterprise of 
modern, times, has encountered similar opposition, and in some instances 
has had no support even from scientific minds. Doctor Bronson says 
there is fair reason to believe that the ship-railway of Captain Eads will 
be in operation before the end of the century, and vessels of five or six 
thousand tons will safely pass over dry land from one ocean to the other. 




Scale 1 inch to the foot 
SECTION OF PART OF CRADLE CARRIAGE. 



"Captain Eads proposed to build a line of twelve rails, with a grade of 
not more than fifty feet to the mile at each end. The line descends into 
the water, to enable ships to be placed in the cradles in which they are 
to rest during the transit. The grade of one foot in a hundred, or fifty- 
two and eight-tenths feet to the mile, would carry the line to a depth of 
thirty feet in a length of 3000 feet. Here the ship, in a landlocked ba- 
sin, will be floated to a cradle and made fast. The cradle and ship to- 
gether will be hauled out by means of stationary engines on land, just 
as ships are hauled upon marine-railways or dry-docks. 

" The cradle is an enormous platform car 300 feet long, or it may be a 
tank of the same length in which a ship can float. In either case it will 



428 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

be tlie width of twelve rails spaced to standard gauge (4 feet S^ inches), 
and will have 100 wheels on each rail, or 1200 wheels in all. This will 
give a pressure of five tons to each wheel, supposing the cradle to be car- 
rying a ship of 4000 tons, which is no more than the burden of the wheel 
of an ordinary freight car with its load. Thus is answered the objec- 
tion which has been made, and very naturally, about the enormous press- 
ure upon the cars and road-bed. Taking the area inta consideration, the 
pressure is no greater than that upon an ordinary railway when a loaded 
train goes over it. 

" The cradle will be drawn along the railway by four locomotives, each 
of them as powerful as five ordinary freight locomotives of the Penn- 
sylvania or other great railway company. Of course there can be no 
curves on the railway, as the cradle can be no more flexible than the ship. 
All bends on the line will be made at turn-tables ; but the nature of the 
country is such that only two of these, or possibly three, will be needed." 

The youths paused at this point to look at the drawings which showed 
the design for supporting the cradle on its carriage. Fred observed that 
the axle of each wheel was independent, and that there was a pair of 
springs above each and every wheel. He asked Doctor Bronson why it 
was so many springs were needed, as it was evident that with twelve hun- 
dred wheels there would be twenty-four hundred springs. 

" I suppose," was the reply, " that it is to facilitate the change of the 
carriage from a level to a grade, or vice versa. In going from an up grade 
to a level there would be a greater pressure at the ends than in the centre, 
and the same would be the case in going from a level to a down grade. 
The springs are intended to regulate this ; the railway is intended to form 
an upward incline from each end towards the centre, where there will be a 
level of several miles." 

Frank asked how fast the train, if train it could be called, was expected 
to run in making the transit of the isthmus with a ship. 

" From eight to ten miles an hour," replied the Doctor. " Captain 
Eads proposed not to keep a vessel more than twelve hours out of the 
water, and he thought it quite likely the time might be reduced to ten 
hours." 

Then the youths looked at the map and studied out the course of the 
proposed ship-railway. Frank slowly dictated while Fred jotted down the 
names of the places mentioned. 

" The bar at the mouth of the river must be dredged out so as to admit 
ships, which will then find plenty of water up to a point called Ceiba Bo- 
nita, on the ITspanapan River, which runs into the Coatzacoalcos just below 



430 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

Minatitlan. There tlie ship-railway will begin, and it runs in a straiglit 
line to the mountains, where there is a depression only 650 feet high. In 
fact there are two of these depressions, and either of them may be taken. 




MAHOGANY HUNTERS. 



These are the passes of Chi vela and Tarifa. By the former the railway 
may run to the town of Tehuantepec, and there make a bend by turn- 
table, and continue to the Pacific Ocean ; and by the latter pass it may go 
to Salinas Cruz, which lies on a lagoon, where a harbor must be dredged 
out." 



THE MAHOGANY-TRADE. 



431 



"And liow much will be the cost of this great work?" one of the 
youths asked. 

" I believe the estimate is seventy-five millions of dollars," was the re- 
ply, " including the construction of the railway and its equipment with cra- 
dles, tanks, locomotives, and everything else needed for operating the line. 

" The saving of distance," continued Doctor Bronson, " for a ship going 
by the Isthmus of Tehuantepec instead of Cape Horn from 'New York to 
Hong-Kong is 8245 miles, and from New Orleans to Hong-Kong 9900 
miles. The route from England to the ports of Eastern Asia and Australia 
is also considerably shortened, and there can be little doubt that the com- 
pletion and successful operation of the ship-railway would be of great ad- 
vantage to the commerce of the world." 

While at Minatitlan the youths saw a vessel loading with mahogany 
logs for a port in Europe, and they naturally made inquiries about the 
wood and where it was procured. They learned that it grew on marshy 




TRAVELLING IN TABASCO. 



ground in the valleys of rivers in Southern Mexico, Honduras, and Cen- 
tral America generally, and also in the West India Islands, tropical South 
America, and tropical Asia and Africa. 

"It is," said their informant, "the most valuable of all the tropical 
trees, as you will see when I tell you the prices at which it is sold. Logs 
fifteen feet long and thirty-eight inches square have been sold for two or 
three thousand dollars each, and in one instance three logs from one tree 
brought $15,000." 



432 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

Frank asked if that was the regular price for the timber or only an 
exceptional one. 

" In these cases it was exceptional," was the reply, " the value depend- 
ing upon the peculiar ' curl,' or grain of the wood. But the work of 
getting out the logs is so great that unless high prices were paid for all 
mahogany the business would be abandoned. The mahogany- cutters 
search through the forest for trees, and then they build roads, often for 
many miles, to haul the logs to the banks of the rivers. The logs are 
usually from ten to sixteen feet long and two to three feet square ; the 
length of the logs will depend upon that of the tree and the number of 
cuttings that can be made to the best advantage. The largest log I ever 
heard of was cut in Honduras ; it was seventeen feet long, fifty-seven 
inches broad, and sixty-four inches deep ; it w^eighed more than fifteen 
tons, and was cut into 5421 feet of inch plank. Reduced to veneering one- 
sixteenth of an inch thick, it would have covered very nearly two acres." 

Fred observed that the logs were square instead of round, and asked 
why it was. 

" There are two reasons for it," was the reply. " The first object is to 
reduce the weight as much as possible without injury to the wood, and 
hence the workmen ' square ' the logs roughly as soon as they have been 
divided into lengths. In the second place, the squaring makes them less 
liable to roll while upon the rough carts by which they are brought 
through the forests to the rivers, where they are floated down to the places 
of shipment. The cutting and hauling are done in the dry season, and 
the work is timed so that it will be completed when the rainy season sets 
in. Then the rivers swell and the logs are floated ; the system is in many 
respects analogous to lumbering operations in Maine, Minnesota, and other 
Northern States of America." 

After leaving the Coatzacoalcos River, the steamer headed for Fron- 
tera, at the mouth of the river Tabasco, but she did not remain long 
enough for our friends to go on shore, much to the disappointment of 
Frank and Fred. They were consoled by a fellow-passenger, who told 
them that the place was hot and unhealthy, and they would run the risk 
of taking the fever by passing no more than a few hours on land. An- 
other consideration was that the anchorage was six miles from town, and 
the fare to the shore was four dollars each waj' — at least that was what 
the boatmen demanded. 

The Tabasco is a river of considerable size, and navigable for quite a 
distance inland by small steamers. The capital of the State of Tabasco 
is San Juan Bautista, about fifty miles from the mouth of the river. By 



A KUINED CITY. 



433 



continuing up the stream the traveller can reach a point whence an over- 
land journey will bring him to the ruins of Palenque, one of the archgeo- 
logical wonders of the western continent. 

" We didn't care much for the modern part of Tabasco," said Fred, 
"as it would not have been much unlike what we have already seen, but 
we did want ever and ever so much to go to Palenque. We have read 
the descriptions of the ruins by Stephens, who visited them in 1839-40, 



dm'] 

Mm--" 













PLAN OF PART OF THE PALACE AT PALENQUE. 



and by Charnay, who went there in 1882. Both gentlemen agree that 
they are wonderful to look at, even from the point of view of an ordinary 
traveller. 

" They tell us of a ruined palace 238 feet long by 180 deep, and 
standing on a mound or platform of earth and stone forty feet high and 
measuring about 100 feet each way more than the palace does. The 
palace was built of stone laid in a mortar of lime and sand, and seems to 
have been covered with stucco in various colors. There is a great quan- 
tity of bass-reliefs and hieroglyphics ; many of these have been injured by 
time and the Indians, but on the other hand a great number are still 
28 



434 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO, 



perfect. Nobody can yet tell the exact extent of the city as it was in the 
time of its glory. A dense forest has grown over the spot, and it would 
take an army of men to remove the huge trees and clear away the 
ground. 

"You may ask how old the city is and when it was abandoned. 
That, as well as the city's extent, is a connndrum. Some writers think it 
was inhabited as late as the time of the Conquest. This is the theory of 




MEDALLION BASS-RELIEF. 



M. Charnay; and a traveller who preceded him in 1774 says he discovered 
'eighteen palaces, twenty great buildings, and. 167 houses in a single 
week,' which is more than can be found by one person in the same time 
nowadays. According to the account of the expedition of Cortez to 
Honduras, he must have passed quite close to the site of Palenque, but 
his faithful chronicler, Bernal Diaz, makes no mention of the city, nor is 
it referred to in the conquerors reports to the King. 

"M. Charnay made explorations through this region, and to the south- 
east of Palenque he visited the ruins of another city ; this he named in 
honor of Mr. Pierre Lorillard, of New York, who had defrayed the ex- 
penses of the expedition. He had hoped to be the first explorer of these 
ruins; but on reaching the spot he found himself preceded by an enterpris- 
ing Englishman, Mr. Alfred Maudsley, of London. The latter generously 
proposed that the Frenchman should name the town, call himself the 
discoverer, in fact do anything he pleased, since he (Maudsley) was only 
an amateur travelling for pleasure, and not for scientific purposes. Char- 



TEMPLES AT LOEILLARD CITY. 



435 






nay accepted the offer in so far as the naming of the place was concerned, 
but he could hardly call himself the discoverer, as it had been previously 
visited b}^ residents of Tenosique, the nearest modern town of any con- 
sequence, and one of them had described it in writing and by drawings. 

" One of the interesting objects found at Lorillard was an idol that 
has a remarkable resemblance to the idols in the Buddhist temples of 
Asiatic countries. It was 
in a temple that was great- 
ly ruined. There are fif- 
teen or twenty temples 
and other buildings at 
Lorillard, and it is quite 
possible that others may 
be found by a careful ex- 
amination of the forest. 
M. Charnay pronounced 
the idol one of the finest 
ever discovered in tropical 
America. It represented 
a figure sitting in the at- 
titude of Buddha, with 
the hands resting on the 
knees ; the head was sur- 
mounted by an enormous 
head - dress intended to 
represent a cluster of 
feathers surrounding and 
rising above a medallion 
and diadem. The gar- 
ments worn by the bust 
are a sort of cape covered 
with pearls and having a 
medallion in front and 
on each side. There are 
heavy bracelets on the 
arms, and there is a girdle 
around the waist with a medallion similar to that which decorates the cape. 

" The sacred character of the statue or idol is indicated by the circum- 
stance that all around it, and in fact all through the temple, were many 
bowls of coarse clay, which were used for burning incense. Some of the 




IDOL IN TKMPLE AT LORILLARD CITY. 



436 



THE BOY TRAVELLEES IX MEXICO. 



bowls contained copal, which was the substance used for incense, and the 
walls of the temples were black with the smoke from tlie offerings. 

" A singular feature about these temples, and also those at Palenque, 
is the presence of the cross among the bass-reliefs and hieroglyphics. Tliis 




CH l»L,u Zv^ ^ 



THE CROSS OF PALENQUE. 

circumstance has given rise to the supposition that the temples were built 
long after the Conquest, and that the natives had been converted to Chris- 
tianity ; but the most careful students of the subject say that the cross was 
a symbol of the Toltecs long before Columbus or Cortez was born. The 
famous sculpture at Palenque was in the temple of the same name, and 
represents a Roman cross on the top of which a bird is perched ; a man at 



ORIGIN OF THE RUINED CITIES. 



437 



one side presents an offering to the bird, and the spaces beneath the arms 
of the cross are covered with hieroglyphics that have not been deciphered. 

"The whole scnlpture on which this cross appears was upon three 
stones placed side by side in the wall of the temple. One of them is still 
there, the second is in the Smithsonian Institution at Washington, and the 
third, which is the central one with the cross upon it, has been taken to 
Las Playas, in the State of Tabasco. 

" The whole country is said to abound with ruins that have never been 
seen by white men, and some of which are not even known to the Indians 
of to-day. It is certain that this region once contained a dense and highly 
civilized population, and the ruins that have been explored show that they 
had a good knowledge of the principles of architecture and sculpture. 




GRAND HALL AT MITLA. 



Exactly who they were has not been revealed, but explorers and scientists 
are slowly penetrating the secret, and in course of time the history of 
these primitive people will be given to the world. 

"The cities at Palenque and Lorillard were of Toltec origin ; the Tol- 
tecs were in Mexico previous to the Aztecs, as we have already mentioned, 
and it is fair to presume that these cities now in crumbling ruins were 
older than the Tenochtitlan which Cortez captured from the Aztecs. In 
the State of Oajaca are the ruins of Mitla, an Aztec city, and they are 
extensive enough to show that a powerful people once lived there. 

" The ruins at Mitla are in two groups, each consisting of four build- 



438 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




EXTERIOR OF TEMPLE AT MITLA. 



ings fronting on a square like the plaza of modern times. There is a hall 
with six columns of stone in the centre, each colnmn being about twelve 
feet high, and tapering towards the top like a slender sugar-loaf. It is 
supposed to have formed a central support for the roof that rested at its 
edges upon the walls, which are parallel to each other. The walls are built 
of rough stones laid with cement, and they seem to have been covered 
originally with stucco. 

" On the outside the buildings at Mitla were built up with blocks of 
hewn stone, and covered with a mosaic laid in stucco, and composed of 
stone of different colors. The doors and windows are square, and have 
lintels of hewn stone, and altogether the buildings had quite a resemblance 
to those of the ancient Egyptians. 

" There is a tradition at Mitla that vast amounts of treasure are con- 
cealed in the temples and surrounding grounds, and the earth has been re- 
peatedly dug over in the search for these things. Under one of the tern, 
pies is a chamber, in which there is an upright column of stone, called 
the ' Pillar of Death.' The natives believe that any Indian who clasps his 
arms around this pillar will die in a short time, but white men are not in 
any such danger." 



AN INTERESTING STOKY. 



439 



CHAPTER XXYIII. 

" THE MYSTERIOUS CITY ;" STORIES AND RUMORS CONCERNING IT.— ACCOUNTS OF 
STEPHENS AND MORELET.— FATE OF TWO YOUNG AMERICANS.— DON PEDRO 
VELASQUEZ.— CARMEN AND CAMPEACHY.— UNDERGROUND CAVES.— HOW LOG- 
WOOD IS GATHERED; ITS COMMERCIAL IMPORTANCE.— THE QUEZAL AND ITS 
WONDERFUL PLUMAGE.— SNAKES AND SNAKE STORIES.— TRAVELLERS' TALES. 
— PROGRESO AND SISAL.— HOW THE YUCATAN RAILWAY WAS BmLT.—AGAV£: 
SISAL A A^A.—BISGOYERY AND CONQUEST OF YUCATAN.— A FEROCIOUS POPU- 
LATION.— REBELLIOUS INDIANS IN YUCATAN; HOW THEY TREAT VISITORS.— 
TOWNS AND VILLAGES DEPOPULATED. 

WHILE considering the accounts of the ruins of ancient cities in 
Mexico and the countries bordering it, our young friends came 
upon allusions to a " mysterious city," somewhere in the unexplored 
region of tropical forests lying to the southward. Their curiosity was 
excited, and they wondered if such a city really existed. 




IN THE FOREST. 



They found that two explorers, Stephens and Morelet, believed in its 
existence, and though they tried hard to reach it were unable to do so. 
Stephens learned of it from the oura of Quiche, a native town of Guate- 



440 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



mala, who claimed to have looked upon the city from the wall of rock 
surrounding the valley where it stands. He had heard of it many years 
before at the village of Chajul. He was then young, and had clitnbed to 
the top of the ridge which the Indians indicated, and from his elevated 
stand-point looked down upon the plain and the white walls and towers of 

the city glistening in the sun. It cov- 
ered a large area, and its people were 
advanced in the arts and capable of 
making a vigorous defence against all 
intruders. 

" Wouldn't that be an expedition 
worth making?" said Frank to Fred, 
after they had read the account in Mr. 
Stephens's book. "Just think of it! 
to be able to discover the mysterious 
city which no white man has ever re- 
turned from !" 

"Yes, that's the tradition concern- 
ing it," was the reply. " Several white 
men have gone there, but no one has 
ever returned from it to tell the story 
of what he saw." 

" Writers on the subject are not 
very encouraging," said Frank, " as 
they assert that the Indians in this mysterious city murder every white 
man who comes within their boundaries. Not even the Spanish jxidres 
are permitted to enter, and they are usually able to go where no other white 
man dare try to penetrate." 

Frank read and reread all the attainable descriptions of the mysteri- 
ous city, and his imagination was fired almost to the degree of explo- 
sion. "The inhabitants understand," he reitiarked, "that a white race 
has conquered the rest of the country, but they are determined not 
to be conquered. They have no coin or other circulating medium, no 
horses, cattle, mules, or other domestic animals except fowls, and they 
keep these underground so that the crowing of the cocks will not be 
heard." 

Probably Frank's belief was largely influenced by the circumstance 
that such a careful explorer as Stephens accepted the story as true ; in 
speaking of it he uses these words : " I conceive it to be not impossible 
that in this secluded region may exist, at this day, unknown to white men. 




JOHN L. STEPHENS. 



AN UNEXPLORED REGION. 



441 



a living, aboriginal city, occupied by relics of the ancient race, who still 
worship in the temples of their fathers." 

In writing an introduction to the narrative of the travels of Arthur 
Morelet, who spent several years in that country, and evidently believed 
in the existence of the mysterious city, Mr. E. G. Squier says as follows : 

" There is a region lying between Chiapas, Tabasco, Yucatan, and the 
Kepublic of Guatemala, and comprising a considerable portion of each of 
those States, which, if not entirely blank, is only conjecturally filled up 
with mountains, lakes, and rivers. It is almost as unknown as the interior 
of Africa itself. . . . Within its depths, far off on some unknown tributary 




SEEKING THE MYSTERIOUS CITY. 



442 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

of the Usmnasinta, the popular tradition of Guatemala and Chiapas i)laces 
the great aboriginal citj, with its wliite walls sliining like silver in the sun, 
which the euraof Quiche affirmed he had seen with his own eyes from 
the tops of the mountains of Quezaltenango." 

A Guatemalan gentleman, Don Pedro Yelasquez, claims to have accom- 
panied two young gentlemen of Baltimore, who succeeded in reaching the 
mysterious city a few years after the account of Stephens was published. 
Having once reached the city they were not harmed ; but when they at- 
tempted to escape they were seized, and one of them was sacrificed on 
the altar of the Sun, after the manner of the Aztec sacrifices already de- 
scribed. The other made his escape, but was so badly wounded that he 
died in the forest. Don Pedro and a few Indians who accompanied the 
young gentlemen managed to get away with their lives, but only by run- 
ning great risks. The account he gives of their adventures is not very 
clear, and it has not secured a prominent place in the history of scientific 
explorations. 

A few years ago an enterprising American naturalist, Mr. F. A. Ober, 
was on the borders of this unexplored region, and was greatly tempted 
to venture alone in search of the mysterious city, and particularly to 
learn about the fauna and flora that abound in its vicinity. It would 
have been madness for him to have undertaken the journey, and he wisely 
refrained from doing so ; he is still of opinion that the examination of 
this unknown and unconquered region offers a fine field for the natural- 
ist, and for societies engaged in promoting scientific investigation. 

After mature deliberation Frank and Fred concluded that the explo- 
ration of this unknown region was not practicable just at that time, but 
they would keep it in mind, and perhaps might lead an expedition thith- 
er at some future day. 

Doctor Bronson suggested that in the mean while they could amuse 
themselves by reading " The Phantom City," a romance based upon the 
stories told by Stephens and others. He thought that the romance might 
contain hints which would be useful in case they should fit out their ex- 
pedition. "At all events," said he, "it is an interesting story, and will 
well repay perusal." 

The steamer made a brief halt at Carmen, an insignificant town on an 
island on the coast, and then proceeded to Campeachy, where she anchored 
about five miles from shore. There was quite a ground-swell on the sea, 
which would have made a journey to the shore somewhat uncomfortable, 
with the possibility, in case the wind increased, of being detained there 
nntil the next steamer happened along. So our friends concluded to ac- 



PECULIAEITIES OF CAMPEACHY. 



443 



quaint themselves with Carapeacliy by looking at it from the deck of the 
vessel ; all day they lay there, and long before the sun went down the 
youths were impatient to be on their way. 

As they looked upon the white walls of the city glistening in the sun, 
it was no great stretch of the imagination for them to believe they were 
repeating the experience of the cura of Quiche, and gazing from the top 
of the mountain chain whicli he claims to have ascended. They learned 
that Campeachy was once of more importance than it is to-day ; it has a 




CAMPEACHY TOBACCO. 



population of 20,000, and is built of a white limestone that is very abun- 
dant in the neighborhood. Its houses are nearly all of but one story in 
height, and the city is surrounded by walls which were built by the Span- 
iards when they founded a settlement here. 

An interesting feature of Campeachy is the great number of subterra- 
nean caves in the hills on which it stands, some of them natural and some 
artificial. These caves were made by the Indians long ago ; most of them 
have been explored in search of treasure, of which very little was obtained. 
ISTumerous skulls and skeletons were found there, and it is evident that 
the caves were used as burial-places, and are much like the catacombs of 
Oriental countries. A few of them have been utilized as cellars by the 
inhabitants, but only a few; the Indians of to-day have a good many 



444 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



superstitions concerning the caves, and look with an unfriendly eye upon 
any one who desecrates them. 

A lighter came alongside with some cargo for the steamer, and Frank 
made a note of what it brought. There were hides of cattle, deer-skins, 
sugar in bags made of the j)ita plant, bales of that textile product, bees- 
wax, and a considerable quantity 
of Campeachy cigars. The to- 
bacco grown in the States of Cam- 
peachy and Tabasco is of very 
good quality, and the cigars are 
often sold for " Havanas " in for- 
eign markets, 

Frank learned that logwood is 
an important article of trade on 
this part of the coast, but it is 
mostly shipped on sailing-vessels, 
on account of the lower charge 
for freight. Carmen has a con- 
siderable commerce in logwood, 
which grows so extensively that 
there is no immediate danger of 
the exhaustion of the supply, es- 
pecially as its cultivation has ex- 
tended to other countries by plant- 
ing the seed or transplanting the young trees. 

" Logwood is used for dyeing purposes," wrote Frank, after he had 
informed himself concerning it, " and also in medicine. There is a belief 
that it is used by wine-makers in coloring claret quite as much as for dye- 
ing cloth or leather. The tree is usually about twenty-five feet high and 
fifteen inches in diameter. Only the 'heart' of the trunk contains the 
dyeing substance, and this is the part exported, the outer sap-wood being 
cut off in the forest as soon as the tree is felled. The logwood-cutters 
have a hard life, and their business is less profitable of late years, owing to 
the extensive use of aniline dyes." 

A passenger who came on board the steamer at Campeacliy had as 
part of his baggage a cage containing a bird of remarkable plumage. It 
presented a variety of colors — green, golden, red, and white — and its tail 
feathers were so long that they seemed out of all proportion to the size of 
the creature's body. Frank and Fred M'ere immediately attracted to it, 
and asked wdiat it was. 




THE QUEZAL. 



AN AMERICAN BIRD-OF-PABADISE. 



445 



" It is a quezal, or quetzal,'''' was tlie reply, " which was at one time the 
sacred and imperial bird of Mexico. The one you see here is not a fine 
specimen. Sometimes you find these birds with the tail featliers four feet 
long; and in ancient times none but the emperors were permitted to wear 
them. Perhaps you saw the feather cloak of Montezuma in the museum 
at the capital ? Well, the feathers that adorn that cloak came from the 
quezal, and the bird is so rare that it takes a long time to gather feathers 
enougli to make a single garment. 

" The quezal is still regarded with much respect by the Indians of this 
part of the country and of Central America, but less so than in the days 
of the Montezumas. As it darts through the forest its feathers flash like 




DIFFICULTIES OF TRAVEL IN CAMPEACHY. 



a moving rainbow, and remind us of the accounts that Eastern travellers 
liave given of the bird-of -paradise. It is rarely taken alive, and is so shy 
that the hunter can only approach it with difficulty. 

" This region abounds in birds," continued his informant, " and also 
with less pleasing things to meet — snakes. . Some of the serpents are 
large and others are venomous. It is a fortunate thing for travellers in 
the forest that the snake seeks safety in flight when he can do so, and does 
not voluntarily attack man. Birds and small animals are his prey, and he 
takes them after the same fashion as the serpents of the rest of the world." 



4:46 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

Fred asked what was the most dangerous of the serpents of this tropi- 
cal region. 

" The worst I know of," was the reply, " is the vivora de sangre, which 
causes the blood of man or beast to sweat through the pores of the body 
until the veins are exhausted and the victim dies in a state of utter weak- 
ness. It is literally a case of bleeding to death, though not in the ordi- 
nary way of opening the veins." 

Then he told of another serpent called the mica, or whipping-snake, 
which w^hen irritated flattens its head upon the ground and seems to fasten 
it there. Then it lashes on either side with its tail like a whip, and it 
strikes a blow of wonderful force when its size is considered. 

Then followed an extended conversation upon the natural history of 
Campeachy and the regions bordering it, but the youths did not take 
further notes, and so we are unable to repeat what was said. Some of the 
stories of the traveller were impressed on the mind of Frank more on 
account of their improbability than for any other peculiarity. 

He told about serpents thirty feet long that suspended themselves from 
trees which overhung path- ways, and swooped down upon cattle, sheep, and 
other animals that came within their reach. Frank asked if human beings 
were exempt from their attacks, and the stranger replied that those who 
ate plenty of chili Colorado with their food were not disturbed, or at any 
rate the snake would not swallow them, as he wasn't fond of red pepper. 
He might kill them before finding out the fact, but as soon as he had done 
so he would respectfully turn aside and seek other game. 

Tlien followed a story about another variety of snake that kills a bird 
on its nest and then proceeds to coil affectionately about the eggs and 
hatch them out. When the young birds appear he cares for them ten- 
derly, bringing them food in the daytime, and at night nestling over them 
to protect their unfeathered bodies from the cold and dampness. 

" And I suppose," said Frank, " that when he has reared them to a suit- 
able size he proceeds to eat them up." 

As to that the stranger could give no information, and accordingly the 
youth concluded that the narrative was not based upon personal obser- 
vation. 

From Campeachy the steamer held her course to Progreso, the prin- 
cipal port of Yucatan. That honor formerly belonged to Sisal, but the 
advantages of Progreso caused it to be preferred, and now it is the seat of 
commerce. Not that the harbor amounts to much, as the shallow coast 
prevents vessels of more than a few feet draught from coming anywhere 
near it. The passengers were landed in a large row-boat that danced very 



A MEXICAN CUSTOM-HOUSE. 



447 



uneasily upon the waves and disturbed the digestion of some who thus 
far had borne the movements of the sea without objection. It was a long 
pull to the shore, but they reached it in safety and resigned themselves to 
the custom-house officials who were waiting at the landing-place. 

The inspection was not very rigorous, as the passengers were from 
another Mexican port and not from foreign lands ; in fact it was nothing 




more than a form, and was quickly over. Then the strangers had a half- 
hour in which to inspect the town of Progreso ; they inspected it and had 
fifteen minutes to spare. The place is simply a shipping-point, and no- 
body lives there except those whose business connects them with marine 
matters. It is surrounded by swamps and is damp and unhealthy. It was 
desirable to get away from it as soon as possible, as it seemed an excellent 
spot for incorporating fever-germs into the system. The population is less 



448 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



than 2000, not including tlie tenants of the cemetery, wliich is said to be 
liberally patronized. 

Meridaj the capital, is abont thirty miles from Progreso, and con- 
nected with it by railway. The train rolled slowly along, taking nearly 
three hours for the journey ; but as it has no competition it has no occa- 
sion to hurry. Passengers sometimes complain of the snail-like speed, and 




'"u^'i'S^'^"^'^ 



TROPICAL RAILWAY TRAIN AND STATION. 



are told that they can possibly do better by getting out and walking. Our 
friends made no complaint, as they realized that even at a pace not exceed- 
ing ten miles an hour it was much better than no railwaj^ at all. The en- 
gine and cars were of American make, and the conductor was a New 
Yorker who had become so bronzed by the sun as to be readily taken for 
a Mexican. 

" This railway was built like a good many other lines in Mexico," said 
a passenger on the train who fell into conversation with Doctor Bronson 
and the youths. " All the material was brought from foreign countries 
and landed at Progreso ; it was then hauled in carts to Merida, and the 
line was hniltfroin Merida towards the sea. The same ideas prevailed as 



RAILWAY BUILDING IN YUCATAN. 



449 



in the case of tlie line between Yera Cruz and the city of Mexico ; the 
peace of the country would be endangered if the railway should be con- 
structed from the sea-coast inland. 

" The story goes that the contractor received a liberal subsidy from the 
Government only on condition that he built from Merida, and as he began 
to use the line as soon as he had five or six miles completed, he made 
money by the operation. There is another story, that he was allowed to 
charge a higli price for passengers while the road was under construction, 
but must come down to a low figure when it was completed. 

" The result was that the contractor stopped work before reaching the 
coast, and did not resume for a long time ; there was a mile or so of un- 
finished road, and this gave him an excuse for exorbitant rates for passen- 
gers. Complaints were so numerous that the Government was obliged to 
interfere and compel him to carry out the spirit as well as the letter of his 
contract." 

Frank watched from one side of the train while Fred kept a sharp eye 
out on the other. Soon after starting, the train passed a lagoon which 
abounded in aquatic birds — duck, teal, egrets, herons, curlews, snipe, peli- 
cans, and the like. Were it not for the liability to fevers, owing to the 




FLOCK OF PELICANS. 



unhealthy miasmas rising from the lagoon, the region would be an attract- 
ive one for sportsmen. Even with its drawbacks a fair number of hunt- 
ers find their way there, and some of them praise the locality in glowing 
terms. After passing the lagoon the road reaches the coral rock which is 
the foundation of Yucatan and supports a thin and rather dry soil. 
29 



450 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



The youtlis thought they were again among fields of the maguey plant 
and haciendas for pulque-making as soon as the solid ground was reached, 
but their new acquaintance undeceived them, 

" These fields that stretch for miles in every direc- 
tion between the coast and the capital," said he, "are 
not covered with the maguey from which pulque is 
made, but with tienequin. Henequin belongs to the 
aloe family, as does the maguey, and it is from this 
plant that a variety of fibre like hemp is produced. 
"When Sisal was the seaport the product took its 
name ; it is known in commerce as sisal-hemp, though 
very little of it comes directly from that place at pres- 
ent. It grows, like the maguey, on rocks or very thin 
soil where nothing else can flourish, and it requires no 
water or but very little. Take away the henequin plant 
and the fibre made from it, and Yucatan would be se- 
riously crippled in its commerce. Considerable corn 
is raised, but it is mostly needed for home consump- 
tion. The value of the sisal - hemp export is above 
three millions of dollars annually, sometimes exceed- 
ing and sometimes falling below that figure. 

" Yucatan has no rivers," he continued, " and the 
planters depend entirely upon rains for irrigation. 
These are supplied by the moisture from the Gulf of 
Mexico, and if this should fail the country would soon 
become a desert." 

The gentleman then gave some information relative 
to the cultivation of henequin and the preparation of 
the fibre which we will reserve for a later page, when 
the youths have had an opportunity to see the proc- 
ess. Fred made note of the fact that the plant was 
indigenous to Yucatan, and used for the production of 
fibre long before the advent of the whites. Its exporta- 
tion in large quantities is a matter of recent times, and 
is steadily increasing. 
Henequin is grown from shoots which are cut from the base of the 
old plants. Three years after the shoots are set out the plant is large 
enough for a first crop of leaves to be cut ; the cutting goes on for twelve 
or fifteen years, and in the mean time new shoots are set out every year, 
so that a plantation is constantly being renewed. When the plant is at its 



SISAL-HEMP. 



HOW SISAL-HEMP IS CULTIVATED. 



451 



full size the leaves are four or five feet long. After a plantation is fairly 
under way, and producing regularly, it requires very little attention. 

The scientific name of sisal-hemp is .Agave 8isalensis or Agave Si- 
salana ; properly speaking, it is not hemp at all, and reminds us of the 
peddler of " hot mutton-pies " who replied, when a customer complained 




INDIANS OF YUCATAN. 



that his wares were frozen, " hot mutton-pies is the name of 'em." The 
true hemp is an annual plant, supposed to be a native of India, whence its 
culture has spread through the world, and it has no resemblance whatever 
to henequin, or Agave Sisalana. 

"While we have been talking on this and other topics the train has 
been rolling on towards Merida. Frank recorded in his note-book that 
Yucatan was first seen by the eye of a white man in 1506, and was first 



452 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

visited and partially explored in 1517 by Hernandez de Cordova. The 
visit of Cordova was not altogether encouraging, as the Indians killed 
or wounded all but one of his companions, among the wounded being 
Bernal Diaz, the historian of Cortez. Not discouraged by his injuries, 
Diaz came the following year to Yucatan with Grijalva, and in 1519 with 
Cortez to the same country and Mexico. 

Mexico and its treasures attracted attention for the next decade or 
two, and very little thought was given to Yucatan. In 1537 a settlement 
was effected ; but the Spaniards were opposed by a ferocious people, and 
found time for nothing but fighting until 1540, when they defeated the 
natives in a great battle on the present site of Merida. After conquering 
the country they found they had achieved a barren victory, as Yucatan 
contained neither gold nor silver, the object of all the Spanish conquests 
in the New World. 

After their defeat the Indians seem to have accepted the situation, 
and acknowledged themselves vassals of the Spaniards. They became 
Christians, like the people of Mexico, and though they may have been 
somewhat perplexed in their endeavors to reconcile the precepts and 
practices of the religion of the white men from beyond the sea, they did 
not find it worth while to argue vigorously with their masters. From 
an exceedingly warlike race they became a peaceable one, though they 
might have been otherwise had their country contained gold and silver 
mines, in which they would have been put to work as slaves. 

According to history, they did not forget all the arts of war or lose 
their instinct for it. In 1761, and again in 1847, they rebelled against the 
Government and made a great deal of trouble ; and even at the present 
time there is a section of the country where the Indians are living in 
open hostility to the authorities. A few thousand of them in the eastern 
part of Yucatan have made a great deal of trouble, causing towns and 
villages to be abandoned in consequence of the raids which they make at 
irregular intervals. Several times they have come into the neighborhood 
of Merida and caused a great deal of excitement. 

Frank and Fred heard terrible stories about these Indians, and were 
cautioned not to go anywhere near their country. " If they get hold of a 
white man," said their informant, " they cut him to pieces immediately 
without waiting for any explanation, or else they take him to one of their 
villages and torture him in the most cruel manner for the amusement of 
the women and children. They live among the hills, swamps, and forests 
of the south-eastern part of the country, and though several expeditions 
have been sent against them, it seenis impossible to penetrate to their 



HOSTILITY OF THE NATIVES. 



453 



retreats. They have a very little trade with the English residents of 
British Honduras, but refuse to allow them to enter their country ; one 
Englishman who had dealt with them for several years ventured to go 
there, and was never seen or heard of again. 

" They are constantly making threats of destroying Merida, and as 
these stories are circulated they greatly alarm the timid portion of the 
inhabitants. It is not likely that they really intend anything of the kind, 
as they would probably be defeated, but they know the value of rumors 
and keep them constantly circulating. In this way they have diminished 
the population and business of Yalladolid more than one-half. It was 
once a prosperous city, but is now languishing, and many of its houses are 
in ruins." 




RETREATING FROM HOSTILE INDIANS. 



454 



THE BOY TKAVELLEKS IN MEXICO. 



CHAPTER XXIX. 

RAILWAY -STATION AT MERIDA.— PUBLIC CONVEYANCES.— THE CALESA.—A RIDE 
THROUGH THE STREETS.— WHEN MERIDA WAS FOUNDED.— PRACTICAL MODE 
OP DESIGNATING STREETS.— PUBLIC BUILDINGS.— CvJ^S^ MUNICIPAL.— J)Vi'E&^ 
AND MANNERS OF THE PEOPLE. — INDIANS, SPANIARDS, AND MESTIZOS. — A 
CITY OF PRETTY WOMEN.— CHARACTERISTICS OF THE MAYA RACE.— THE MES- 
TIZO QUARTER.— SCENES IN THE MARKET.— BREAKFASTING AT A MEDIO RES- 
TAURANT.— EUCHRE OR YUCCA.— USES OF THE YUCCA PLANT.— GAMBLING IN 
YUCATAN.— Z^ LOTERIA; HOW IT IS PLAYED.— AMERICAN COUNTERPART OF 
THE YUCATEO GAME.— A POPULAR ASSEMBLAGE. 

THE train rolled into Merida and halted under the walls of an old con- 
vent that has been converted into a public hospital. As the passen- 
gers emerged from the station Erank and Fred were impressed with the 

listlessness of the cab-drivers, who did 
not seem to care whether tliej ob- 
tained customers or not. They stood 
or sat idly near their vehicles, and 
one was sound asleep on his box, 
where he evidentl}^ did not wish to be 
disturbed for so trivial a matter as 
earning a living. 

The carriages in waiting were of 
various kinds. That which first 
caught the eyes of the youths was a 
calesa, a sort of chaise carrying two 
persons, the driver being seated on 
the horse ; the shafts were of unusual 
length, and the weight was so placed 
■^ ' '- - that fully one -third of it rested on 

IN THE OUTSKIRTS. tlic aulmal, in addition to that of the 

driver. The wood-work was bright 
with paint and gilding, and over the frame was drawn a cover of white 
linen to ward oif rain and dust together with the heat of the sun, which is 
by no means light in Yucatan. Ered suggested that it was a wise pro- 




YUCATEO CAERIAGES. 



455 



vision of nature to seat the driver on the horse, as he could not conven- 
iently go to sleep there. 

A somewhat rickety carriage to hold four persons was secured, and in 
this conveyance the travellers proceeded to the only hotel of which Merida 
can boast. Until recently the place had no hotel whatever, and strangers 
were obliged to hunt lodgings for themselves or apply to their consular 
representative or a foreign merchant. Even as it is, a letter of introduc- 
tion to a resident is a very useful document. Few travellers go to Merida, 
and the universal testinjony of those who have been there is that the resi- 
dents are hospitable. The same may be said generally of the inhabitants 
of the towns, villages, and haciendas throughout Yucatan. 

The streets of Merida are broader than those of many other Mexican 
cities, but their pavement does not attract attention by its excellence. 




THE CALESA. ENTRANCE OF A MERIDA HOUSE. 



The houses are of stone, and mostly but a single story in height. The 
entrance is generally through an arched door-way into a court-yard, and 
the windows that face the street are invariably grated and nearly all with- 
out glass. The construction of the houses suggests Moorish and Spanish 
architecture, together with some features peculiar to the dwellings of the 
natives. 



456 THE BOY TEAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

Merida stands on the site of a native city, wliere a great and decisive 
battle was fought in 1540. According to the Sj)anish historians, there 
were 200 Spaniards against 40,000 Indians. Doubtless the figures are not 
exact, but it is quite likely that the defeated army was vastly superior in 
numbers to the invaders. The Spaniards had, of course, the advantage of 
lire-arms, as they had in the conquest of Mexico, and we have seen in pre- 
vious pages what a great advantage it was. The Indians had only spears, 
swords, and bows and arrows, and their bodily defences were tunics of 
wadded cotton. These tunics were efficient against their own kind of 
weapons, but of little use to repel a musket-ball. The cannon of the Sjjan- 
iards created terrible havoc among them, and one chronicler says that 
when the Indians were heavily massed the cannon-balls tore through them 
and mowed down hundreds at every discharge. 

Where is now the Plaza Mayor was a mound of stone and earth at the 
time of the Conquest. On the top of the mound was an altar, on which 
sacrifices were made ; but the natives were not as much addicted to them as 
were the people of Mexico. This very circumstance had much to do with 
the success of Cortez in his conquest. The Aztecs sought to take their 
enemies alive in order to sacrifice them on their altars; and it is said that 
Cortez himself was in their hands on two occasions. They might easily 
have killed him, but while they were leading him away uninjured, in order 
that he should be kept for sacrifice, he was rescued by his followers. 

The mound referred to was torn down for the sake of the building 
material it contained ; and the same was the case with man}^ other mounds 
and pyramids in its neighborhood. Yery much of the material of which 
Merida is constructed was obtained from these edifices. 

The streets cross each other at right angles, and Frank observed some- 
thing which he thought quite original in the naming of the streets. Here 
is his memorandum on the subject : 

" For the convenience of the Indians who could not read or write 
Spanish, or anything else, in fact, the streets were named after birds and 
beasts. In addition to the Spanish name in letters there was the figure of 
the creature after which the street was called. The Street of the Ox had 
the figure of an ox in stone or plaster, or painted on the wall ; the Street 
of the Flamingo presented a tall flamingo with a beak of fiery red, and 
the Street of the Elephant had a well-moulded figure of that animal with 
enormous trunk and tusks. The idea is a capital one, and I'm surprised 
it has been so little utilized." 

"It is utilized more than you think," said Doctor Bronson, when 
Frank called his attention to the subject. " You remember that in Russia 



PRACTICAL DESIGNATIONS. 



457 




numbers of the 
population can- 
not read, the 
shop-keepers or- 
nament their 
signs with pict- 
nres of the things 
they have to sell ; 
and the custom 
is by no means 
unknown in our 
own land. A 
watch-maker 

hangs out a wooden watch, a boot-maker displays a boot or shoe, and a 
druggist shows a mortar and pestle. You remember how convenient it 
was' in the far East, for the servants who did not know a single Eoman 
letter, that the canned fruits, meats, and vegetables from America and Eng- 
land bore on their labels a picture of the article contained in the can ?" 



HOUSE BUILT BY MONTEJO. 




458 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

" Certainly, I do remember," replied the youth. " After all, there's 
nothing new under the sun, though the application of the idea here is 
something we have not before seen." 

There are twelve or fifteen squares, or plazas, in the city, the most im- 
portant being, of course, the central one known as the Plaza Mayor. The 
cathedral and the Casa Municipal, or City Hall, face upon this square, and 

on one side of it is the oldest house 
,,„ ^ in the city, dating from 1549. 

The city was founded in 1542 by 
Don Francisco de Montejo, the son 
of the Governor of the Province 
■- "" of Yucatan, and bearing exactly 
the same name. Montejo, junior, 
MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS. ^^s licuteuant - govcmor and cap- 

tain-general, and the old house just 
mentioned, which is one of the sights of Merida, was built by him. The 
fagade is ornameoted with sculj)tures, which are said to have been made 
by Indians after designs supplied by the Spaniards. They represent the 
conquerors trampling on the bodies of natives, who have been made non- 
resistant by the removal of their heads. It was probably the idea of 
Montejo that the sight of these sculptures would deter the Indians from 
any further resistance to the white men who came from beyond the sea, 
and brought the Christian religion to replace the paganism which they 
found here. 

The hotel in which our friends were lodged is also on the great square, 
directly opposite the old house of Montejo, which was the first building 
to which the youths gave special attention. Most of the buildings front- 
ing the square are of more than one story ; in fact, the best architecture 
of the place may be said to be in that neighborhood. The Casa Munici- 
pal is an imposing building of two stoiies, with broad porticos supported 
on arches. It has a high tower, from which watchmen are supposed to 
be constantly on the lookout for fires ; though, owing to the material used 
in the construction of Merida, and the absence of stoves and furnaces, fires 
are of exceedingly rare occurrence. 

" The first thing to attract our attention as we strolled through the 
streets," wrote Fred, " was the dress of the people. The men — I am 
speaking of the native Indians — wear cotton trousers, or drawers, which 
are tight at the waist, and descend to the knee or below it. Sometimes 
they have shirts on their backs and sometimes none; but in the latter case 
a man is reasonably certain to have one folded away in his hat, to be worn 



DEESS OF THE NATIVES. 



459 



on state occasions or when the rules of society demand. Some of them 
wear a long shirt and no trousers, and altogether the wardrobe of a native 
of the lower class is not costly. Frequently we see men with one leo- 
of the trousers rolled up and the other hanging down, and it is a com- 
ical sight when a half a dozen thus arrayed are grouped together. A 
very noticeable feature about the shirt is that it is worn with the ' flaps ' 
outside, like a carter's frock or 'jumper,' and not inside, as in northern 
countries. 

" The dress of the women is a skirt hanging from the waist to the 
ground, and a white uvpil, or outer garment, that hangs from the shoul- 
ders to the ground, like a loose wrapper.. It is the traditional dress of 
300 years ago, and the fashion has not changed at all in that time. On 
Sundays and feast days both sexes are arrayed in spotless white, but on 
other days their garments are apt to be more or less dingy. Compared to 
the Mexicans, the Yucateos, as the people of Yucatan are called, are won- 




MUNICIPAL PALACE AND SQUARE, MERIDA. 



460 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



derfuUy cleanly in their dress and ways, and it is as rare to see a dirty 
Yucateeo as it is to see a clean Aztec. The uipil of the women has short 
sleeves, and is hot as high in the neck as the close-fitted dress of New 
England, but is a modest and neat-looking dress, and the whiteness of the 

material makes a fine contrast with 
the dark skin of the wearer. 

" Many of the women are ]3retty, 
and we do not wonder that the Span- 
ish conquerors were loud in their 
praises of the comeliness of the fem- 
inine part of the. inhabitants of Yu- 
catan. Their eyes are black as coals, 
and their sight is as sharp as that of 
the traditional Indian everywhere ; al- 
together the people have a close re- 
semblance to the Malay race, and we 
have but to close our eyes a moment 
to imagine ourselves once more in 
Batavia or Singapore. 

" The people are of the Maya race, 
and here, in the name, we have a near 
approach to ' Malay.' By some they 
are supposed to be an ancient j)eople 
who lived here before the advent of 
the Toltecs, which happened about 
the twelfth century ; others believe 
them to be a combination of two races, the Toltecs from the west and 
another race from the islands of the Caribbean Sea. Landa, Stephens, 
Squier, and other writers say the Mayas were the most civilized people of 
America ; they had an alphabet and a literature, cultivated the soil, had 
rude machinery for manufacturing textile and other fabrics, possessed 
sailing-vessels, and had a circulating medium which corresponded to the 
money of the Old World. 

" The great temples of Palenque and other cities of this part of the 
world were built by this people, or by tribes and races closely allied to 
them ; we have shown by our accounts of Palenque and Lorillard City 
that these temples were of no mean architecture, and we shall have more 
to say when we come to the ruined cities of Yucatan. 

"According to the Spanish historians, the people were ruled despot- 
ically by a king, and were divided into nobles, priests, common people. 




DANCING SCENE. 



ANCIENT GOVERNMENT IN YUCATAN. 



461 



and slaves. The king, nobles, and priests held the greater part of the 
lands ; the land of the common people was held on the communistic prin- 
ciple, and each man had enough to cultivate for the support of his family. 
The commoners were obliged to supply the noble with fish, game, salt, 
and other things he wanted ; to cultivate his land, and follow him to war 
whenever he chose to go on a campaign. In fact the condition of the 
peasants in Yucatan was much like that of the subjects of a rajah of 
India before the English took possession of the country, or of a daimio 
of Japan. They had nothing they could call their own, not even their 
lives, and their condition was not at all improved by the conquest of the 
country by the Spaniards, except that they were not liable to be taken 
for sacrificial purposes, according to the ancient custom. 




NATIVE VILLAGE IN THE INTERIOR. 



" Slavery has been abolished, and imprisonment for debt is no longer 
allowed by law; but every man between the ages of twenty-one and fifty 
can be drafted for military service. When so employed he receives six 
cents a day and supplies his own food ! 

" Merida has a population of about 50,000, by far the greater number 
of them being of Indian blood either pure or mixed. There is a large 
proportion of mestizos, or half-castes, and they are the handsomest part 
of the population. We have seen some mestizo women who could com- 
pete successfully in a beauty show including Mrs. Langtry and all the 



462 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

other ' professionals ' of tlie day. The mestizos inhabit a part of the town 
by themselves, where their thatched huts stand in quarter-acre lots planted 
with grass and trees. These huts are said to be verj'^ much like those occu- 
pied by the Indians before the Conquest. 

"You know we always go to the market-place in every strange city 
that we visit, and may be sure we did not omit that of Merida. It is not 
unlike the market-places of Mexican cities in general, but has some feat- 
ures peculiarly its own. 

" Half the population of the city seemed to have gathered there — 
Indians, mestizos, Spaniards, foreigners, and dogs ; and there was a hum of 
voices which never ceased for an instant. The manners of the natives are 
more pleasing than those of the people in the markets of Mexico. They 
chat good-naturedly and with many a smile, as though they enjoyed com- 
ing to the market without regard to whether they sell anything or not. 
A great deal of bargaining is necessary in making purchases, for the 
Indian has no notion of the value of time ; and for the matter of that, the 
tropical resident, whatever his nationality, is rarely in a hurry. We passed 
many picturesque groups, fruit-sellers with their wares in broad baskets, 
their heads wrapped in rebozos either white or colored, and their eyes 
shining like little globes of polished anthracite set in their brown skins. 

" These fruit-sellers were so numerous near the entrance of the market 
that it was no easy matter to get past them into the open space beyond. 
A medio would buy all the oranges, bananas, or mangoes that one would 
care for. Frank and I invested two medios (twelve cents) in oranges, and 
distributed them to a lot of boys that were strolling through the place. 
They took the fruit with an air of gratitude combined with dignity, and 
during the rest of our stay several of them followed us about in the hope 
that our princely generosity would be renewed. 

" The square where the market w^as held was filled with little shelters 
to keep off the heat of the sun. These shelters were made by sticking up 
poles so as to hold a piece of matting or common cloth in a horizontal 
position. Under each of these impromptu tents a vender was seated, gen- 
erally a woman or a girl, and the articles for sale were spread on the 
ground. Eggs, fruit, lettuce, peas, beans, and kindred products of the gar- 
den were thus displayed ; and the wonder seemed to be that nobody trod 
upon the wares, which were certainly endangered by careless feet. Mules 
and donkeys with large panniers on each side brought loads of things to 
be disposed of, but the greater part of the burdens were borne on the 
backs of men. Occasionally a man on horseback appeared in the market, 
and once in a while a policeman showed himself, though his presence did 



THE MARKET AT MEEIDA. 



463 



not appear to be needed at all. We did not hear or see anything that 
approached a quarrel, and were told that fights were of very rare occur- 
rence. 

" Some of tliese shelters are restaurants on a small scale, and one day 
we went to the market to take a medio breakfast, being assured that it was 



-wcs^'.-S.-vs -.^^ 



^" 




FRUIT-SELLERS IN THE MARKET-PLACE. 



one of the sensations of the country. "We sought one of the most attract- 
ive restaurants we could find, and squatted on the ground close to the one 
individual who was proprietor, chef^ head-waiter, waiter, and everybody 
else. Our breakfast was a stew of frijoles, chile con carne, and tortillas. It 
was served to us mjica7'as, or half-shells of some kind of tree-fruit whose 



464 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




name we did not learn. ISTo spoons or forks were supplied. We used the 
tortillas for spoons, and afterwards devoured them in true Mexican style. 
As Sam Weller said of veal-pie, a medio breakfast in a Yueateo restaurant 
is ' werrj fillin' ' at the price. The Yucateos are as devoted to the tortilla 
as are the inhabitants of the rest of 
Mexico, and the native cooks are ex- 
pert in its manufacture. 

"While in the market we met 
onr acquaintance of the railway- 
train. His first question was as to 
whether we had seen how the natives 
practise gambling, and his second, 
' Have you tried euchre V 

"We thought it a singular ques- 
tion, and Frank replied that neither 
of us played that or any other game 
of cards. 

" He laughed and said, ' I don't 
mean euchre ; I mean yucca.' 

"We looked rather puzzled I'm 
sure, and then with another laugh he 
pointed to a pile of something that 
looked very much like 'ruta-baga' 
turnips, such as cattle are fed with in some parts of the United States. 

" ' That,' said he, ' is yucca, and it belongs to the same family as the 
maguey and henequin.' As soon as he said this we remembered to have 
seen the plant in Mexico; We had just been talking about the fondness 
of the people for gambling, and hence our misunderstanding. 

"We bought a medio's worth of the article and tasted it. The flavor 
was something like that of a sweet turnip, and not at all disagreeable. I 
can readily understand that one might become fond of it, and our friend 
said that it was quite nutritious. The root is eaten by the natives, the 
fibres furnish a textile fabric like henequin, and soap is made from the 
stalk and leaves. Recently an enterprising American has manufactured a 
preparation for the hair from the yucca plant, and it is said to possess 
remarkable powers for restoring hair to heads that for years have been as 
smooth as an ostrich-egg. 

"While on the subject of gambling we will mention the popular 
amusement of la loteria, or ' the lottery.' 

" Our guide took us into a large hall, Avhich is ojDen to the public, or 



SITTING FOR HER PORTRAIT. 



IN A GAMBLING-HOUSE. 



465 



rather to anybody who can force his way tlirough the dense crowd at the 
door. All classes seemed to have assembled there ; rich and poor were 
seated at the same tables, and their object seemed to be amusement rather 
than gain. The stakes were very small, ordinarily a medio, and in a few 
instances dos reales. The room was hot as an oven, brilliantly lighted, 
every foot of standing and sitting room was occupied, and white people of 
all grades in life, 
gentlemen as well 
as ladies, negroes, 
Indians, and mes- 
tizos crowded to- 
gether at the ta- 
bles, which were in 
two rows the whole 
length of the hall. 
" The amuse- 
ment is licensed by 
the Government, 
which sells sheets 
of paper for a real 
each on which the 




30 



IN THE MARKET-PLACE. 



466 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

game is played. It is done by a combination of numbers all the way from 
one to ninety. These numbers are arranged on the paper or cards in dif- 
ferent combinations, no two cards being alike. 

"Each player buys a card and places it in front of him on the table. 
Then a hat or a basket is passed around, and each one puts in his medio or 
whatever else the stake may be. When the money has all been collected 
and the amount of the stake announced, the game begins. In addition to 
his card each player has a pile of grains of corn in front of him, and a 
stick with which to raj:* on the table when the time to do so arrives. 

" The object is to get a row of five numbers on the cards from the 
numbers which are drawn, and the one who first gets a row wins the 
purse. On a platform, in full view of everybody, is a man with a bag 
containing wooden or ivory balls, on which the numbers from one to 
ninety are painted. "When the game is to begin, this man draws a ball 
from the bag and announces the number upon it, and the player who 
finds that number on his card places a grain of corn over the figures. 
One after another, numbers are called out in a voice that rises above all 
the confusion of sounds with which the place is filled, and each time a 
number is called it is marked with the corn. 

" Everybody is intently watching his card, and there is a crowd of 
spectators looking over the shoulders of the players. Men, women, chil- 
dren — white, black, yellow, and all other colors possible to humanity — are 
there ; and so are all the dresses of Yucatan, from the uniform of the high 
ofiicial and the satin or silk of the grand dame of society down to th^ 
cotton garb of the Indian, and quite likely his bare shoulders with no 
garb at all. Three-fourths of those present are smoking, and the atmos- 
phere is like a morning fog, only a great deal worse. 

"By-and-by somebody raps sharply on the table with his stick to 
indicate that he has made a row of five numbers, and stands up in his 
place. Then the man on the platform calls the drawn numbers again, and 
if the announcement of the row is correct the winner takes the purse. 
As the stake is small, he does not win a great deal ; but evidently he is the 
envy of his less fortunate neighbors. 

"Mistakes occur sometimes, and then there is a tumult, in which 
knives may be drawn and things become very lively for the by-standers. 
We did not stay long in the place, you may be sure, but we came away 
convinced that la loteria is less ruinous to the pockets of the players 
than many other games of chance. 

"An American gentleman with whom we talked on the subject said 
that this game is not unlike one known in some other parts of the world 



LEGALITY OF GAMBLING. 467 

under the name of ' keno.' He told us that there were many other forms 
of gambling in Yucatan, most of them being forbidden by the Govern- 
ment, and consequently played less openly than the lottery. He told us 
that there was heavy gambling in the clubs ; in some of them the play 
is only for gold, silver being considered too insignificant and bulky for 
the amusement of gentlemen. 

" We thought it was very much to the credit of the people of Merida 
that the utmost good-nature seemed to prevail in the dense crowd at the 
hall we visited. We did not hear a rude word, or witness a rude act of 
any kind ; and the only exceptions, we are told, is when there is a quarrel 
growing out of the drawing of the numbers from the bag." 




HO MOKE "LOTERIA." 



468 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



CHAPTER XXX. 

POTTERY AND HAMMOCK MARKETS.— HAMMOCKS IN YUCATAN ; THEIR GENERAL 
USE FOR SLEEPING PURPOSES.— YUCATEO SALUTATIONS.— AN AWKWARD SITU- 
ATION.— FASHIONABLE, MESTIZO, AND INDIAN BALLS.— CHARACTERISTIC INDIAN 
DANCES.— WORSHIP OF THE SUN AMONG THE ANCIENT YUCATEOS.— NATIVE 
MUSIC— ZOPILOTE DANCE.— VISIT TO A HENEQUIN HACIENDA.— THE VOLaN 
COCB^; A VEHICLE OF THE COUNTRY.— A RACE AND HOW IT ENDED.— ARRL 
VAL AT THE HACIENDA.— THE SCRAPING AND BALING MACHINERY.— START- 
ING A PLANTATION.— PRICE OF THE FIBRE IN THE MARKET.— "NO MONEY IN 
THE BUSINESS."— FIBRE - FACTORIES IN YUCATAN.— HOW THE OWNERS OF ES- 
TATES LIVE. 

" T^HE market we have described," wrote Fred, " is for the sale of arti- 

-■- cles of food only. There is another market where pottery, cotton 

fabrics, and other miscellaneous wares are sold, and still another which is 




HAMMOCK LODGINGS IN THE COUNTRY. 



entirely given up to the makers and venders of hats and hammocks. 
Hammock-making is a great industry in Yucatan, and thousands of these 
articles are sent to New York. London, and other foreign ports. A curi- 



UTILITY OF THE HAMMOCK. 



469 



ous circumstance about this industry is that the best hammocks are those 
for home consumption ; the foreign markets are unwilling to pay the 
prices of the fine qualities, and consequently none are sent away except 
upon special orders. When jon next buy a Yucatan hammock in 'New 
York you may make u-p your mind that it is one in which only a very 
poor man here would sleep. 

" Hammocks are in use for sleeping purposes all through this country, 
and the natives prefer them to beds. Our personal experience is that a 
hammock is a very good thing to lounge in, or even to take a nap, but for 
an all-night sleep it doesn't give the rest and refreshment to the tired 




VIEW ON A BACK STREET. 



body that we find in a bed. But habit has a great deal to do with this, as 
with many other things of life ; a Japanese pillow is torture to a Euro- 
pean quite as much as the European one is to a Japanese. 

"The advantages claimed for a hammock are that the sleeper is pro- 
tected from many insects that would trouble him in a bed, and the oppor- 
tunity for the air to circulate, which is a very desirable matter in a hot 
country. Both these arguments are well founded, and so is the further ' 
one that the hammock-sleeper can carry his bed with him, as it weighs 
only a few ounces and can be rolled into a small parcel. 

"We asked the prices and were staggered at the figures. In New 



470 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

York we think $2 a good price, and the majority of the hammocks sold 
there bring $1 or $1.50 each. The cheapest they showed us was §7, and 
they had them all the way up to $15, $18, $20, $25, and even $30. The 
dealer said that if these were not fine enough for our pui-pose we might 
' have them made to order, and he could give us something superb for $50, 
We bought some of the cheapest kind, and they were far better than any- 
thing Ave ever saw at home. The best qualities are made of very fine 
fibre, and if care is taken with them they last for several years. 

" While walking along the streets near the market we met some ladies 
to whom we had been introduced. They recognized and saluted us; 
they were on the opposite sidew^alk, and at first we thought they were 
beckoning for us to cross over to their side. Then we remembered what 
we had been told about the Yucateo form of salutation, and replied by 
raising our hats and bowing. This is what they did : 

" Each lady raised her hand until it was on a level with her eyes, and 
then she ' wiggled ' her fingers back and forth in a way that is impossible 
to describe in words. It is very much what one would do in our country 
if she wished to speak to you, and we can readily believe what we have 
been told, that this form of salutation is a great puzzle to the stranger. 

" One day an Englishman, who was thus saluted, went up to his fair 
recognizer, a lady to whom he had been presented at a party on the pre- 
vious evening, and stood waiting for her to begin the conversation. She 
was accompanied by another lady, neither of whom could speak English, 
while the Englishman did not know a word of any language but his own. 
The situation was awkward, and after both had pronounced several phrases 
that the other side could not comprehend, the Englishman bowed and pro- 
ceeded to walk away. The lady repeated the Merida salutation, and this 
puzzled the stranger more than ever, as he supposed she wished him to 
follow. He gallantly complied, and walked denmrely along till he hap- 
pened to meet the gentleman who had introduced him. Explanations fol- 
lowed, and all parties concerned had a good laugh over the occurrence. 
It is probable that the Englishman's laugh was less hearty than that of 
the others, as he could not fail to be somewhat mortified at his awkward 
misunderstanding. 

" In the fashionable hours for strolling on the paseo everybody is 
there, and no matter how often you meet any one whom you know you 
are expected to salute. This keeps everybody on the alert, as the turns 
of the paseo are likely to bring the same individuals face to face every 
few minutes. 

"It was our good-fortune to be in Merida in the season of dancing. 



A SCENE OF RECREATION. 



471 




472 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

and we were invited to go to a ball, in fact to several balls. AVe went 
first to an aristocratic one, which was given in the Casino, a large, two- 
storied building, with balconies or verandas all around, and brilliantly 
lighted. It is built around a court-yard planted with tropical trees and 
flowers in great j)rofusion, and is a very attractive place. 

" The ball-room occupied three sides of the upper story of the build- 
ing, while the fourth contained the dressing and supper rooms. The 
orchestra was in the corridor just outside the dancing-hall, and Avhile 
everybody could hear the music, very few could see the musicians. We 
got there before the dance began and while the ladies were coming out 
of the dressing-rooms and taking seats at the side of the ball-room, very 
much as they are seated in other countries. We observed that the gen- 
tlemen held the ladies by the hand as they escorted them- to their seats, 
and not by giving them. their arms as we do. 

" It was a real beauty show when the ladies were ranged along the 
wall, and they seemed to know it just as well as did their admirers, who 
congregated at one end of the hall and in the corridors, and smoked cigar- 
ettes. The gentlemen chatted with each other with more or less anima- 
tion, but watched the line of senoritas, whose eyes sparkled like diamonds 
and were a sharp contrast to their pearly white teeth. Under the light 
the senoritas' complexions were as glowing as that of a young English 
girl; of course, we cannot say how much of it is due to nature, and how 
much to cosmetics. They all had splendid heads of coal-black hair, ar- 
ranged in the tasteful way for which Spanish ladies are famous. 

" The music struck up for a waltz, and then each gentleman advanced 
towards the lady of his choice, and whirled her away for the round of the 
hall. The theory of these balls is that everybody knows everybody else, 
and the gentlemen did not ask the ladies whether they wanted to dance 
or not. Of course, it is to be presumed that they were there with that 
object in vievr, but we thought it would be more graceful if they had 
been consulted before being lifted from their seats and set in motion. 

" We had wondered how it was possible for people to dance in this 
hot atmosphere, but when we heard how slowly the music played, and 
saw that the waltz was only a slow gliding and sliding over the floor, as 
though the waltzers were not more than half awake, we wondered no 
longer. It is nothing like the exciting whirl of a waltz in northern coun- 
tries; and the same may be said of the other dances of this very select 
assemblage. We remained half an hour or so, and then went to the mes- 
tizo ball, where it was a good deal more animated. 

" The mestizo girls wore the white dresses already described ; some of 



A MESTIZO BALL. 



473 



tliem had only a few ribbons or flowers for ornaments, while others were 
loaded down with bracelets, rings, and other ornaments, in which diamonds 
had a more or less prominent part. A gentleman who was with us said 
many of the diamonds were hired for the occasion, and lie had no doubt 
that a good share of them were paste. The men were the most comical 
sights you can imagine, as they all wore their hats, and the most of them 
had their shirts waving outside, after the custom of the country. Some 
of them had coats and jackets. A man thus clad was looked upon as an 
aristocrat ; but to be so considered he was obliged to suffer some incon- 
venience, as the outer garment is a serious burden in the heavy tropical 




INDIANS DANCING, 



atmosphere, made doubly oppressive by the heat of the room. Two or 
three men carried their jackets on their arms, and some flung them into 
a corner at the risk of never finding them again. 

" The musicians were native Indians, who played with perfect time 
and melody, as though they had graduated from the schools of the most 
accomplished masters of Europe. All these people are natural m-usicians ; 
a very little instruction suffices for them, and with careful training they 



474 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

ought to be able to astonish the world. The men and women dance to 
perfection ; we did not see a false step taken during the time we looked 
on at the ball, and yet it is not likely that any of the dancers ever had 
the advantage of a professional instructor. The members of the orches- 
tra at the mestizo ball were dressed in the shirt and drawers already men- 
tioned, and, like the dancing men of the party, retained their hats all the 
time they played. 

" The dances were more interesting than those of the fashionable ball, 
inasmuch as the latter were Euroj)ean in character, while those of tlie 
mestizos had a peculiarity of their own. One was called the zopilote, or 
buzzard dance ; a man and a woman each carrying a handkerchief which 
they twirled above their heads, and in all sorts of directions whirled and 
twisted themselves along the floor, all the while keeping perfect time to 
the music of the performers. It reminded us very much of one of the 
national dances of the Russians, which is often given by the ballet troupes 
of the imperial theatres of Moscow and St. Petersburg, and may be seen 
in its simplicity in almost any town or village of the great northern 
empire. 

" But more interesting to us than either of the balls we have men- 
tioned was that of the Indians, where they were indulging in historic 
dances which have been preserved from ancient times. When we entered 
the room, wliich was pretty well filled with people who respectfully made 
way for us, the performance had already begun. We will remark here 
that the ancient Yucateos, like the Parsees, were worshippers of the sun ; 
the reverence for that luminary has descended to this day, though it is by 
no means preserved in its former purity. 

" Mr. Ober, the author of ' Travels in Mexico,' seems to have witnessed 
a better performance of this dance than we did, as he saw the beginning, 
which we did not see, so we will quote his account, which is as follows : 

" ' The first thing these Indians did was to spread a banner in the cen- 
tre of the room, on which was painted a figure of the sun, with two peo- 
ple kneeling in adoration of it. The chief of this band of about twenty 
Indians then suspended from his neck a bright-colored representation of 
the sun stamped on tin. At the foot of the banner-staff crouched an old 
man, with a drum made by stretching the skin of a calf or goat over one 
end of a hollow log ; at the side of the drum hung the shell of a land-tor- 
toise, and the old man beat the drum and rattled the shell in unison. The 
article with which he beat the drum attracted my attention, and I exam- 
ined it and found it to be the gilded horn of a deer. This hollow drum, 
witli turtle-shell and deer's antler, fully confirms the statement that the 



AN ABOKIGINAL DANCE. 



475 



music is aboriginal ; for one of the old chroniclers, in an account of a ter- 
rible battle with the Indians of Canipeachy, writing not long after the 
event, says that they made a most horrible and deafening noise with 
these instruments: "They had flutes and large sea-shells for trumpets, 
and turtle-shells, which they struck with deer's horns." 

" ' After the banner was spread, the band ran around it in a crouching 
attitude ; in one hand each held a rattle, and in the other a fan of turkey 
feathers, with a handle formed by the foot and claw of the bird. Each 
one wore a wire mask, with a handkerchief over his head, and a mantle 
embroidered with figures of animals, and hung with small sea-shells. The 




PREPARING FOR THE BALL. 



costume was that of the mestizo women — a skirt from the waist to the 
ankles, with their peculiar dress over it — just such an one as was worn by 
their ancestors centuries ago, and by the ancient Egyptians. On their feet 
they wore sandals, tied on with hempen rope. The chief was distinguished 
by a high crown of peacock feathers. He chanted something in the Maya 
language, and they replied, and then the music struck up a weird strain 
and they danced furiously, assuming ludicrous postures, yet all having 
seeming, significance, shaking their rattles and fans to right and left, and 
all keeping perfect time. After nearly half an hour of dancing they 
stopped at a signal from the chief, .and gathered about the banner, gazing 
upon the image of the sun with looks of adoration. 



476 



THE BOY TRAVELLEKS IN MEXICO. 




A VOLAN COCHE. 



" ' This was the dance of sorrow or supplication ; after it came the 
dance of joy, an Indian fandango ; then the flag was furled and tlie floor 
occupied by two couples.' " 

Their night in the round of balls caused our friends to sleep rather late 
the next morning. While they were at breakfast an invitation came to 
visit a henequin hacienda near the city, in the company of one of the own- 
ers, to whom they had been introduced. It is hardly necessary to say that 
they accepted at once. • 

■ They were to start at an early hour on the following morning, and at 
the appointed time a volaii coche was announced at the door. Frank's 
description of this vehicle will be interesting to our readers. 



TKAVELLING IN YUCATAN. 



477 



"It is the travelling carriage of Yucatan, and well adapted to the bad 
roads of the country. It consists of a shallow box on two wheels, the box 
being suspended on leather springs and having a thick mattress spread 
over the bottom and just filling it. One or two Europeans form a load 
for one of these carriages, but it will easily hold half a dozen natives of 
assorted sizes. There are no seats ; one is obliged to lie at full leno-th or 
sit Turkish fashion, and hold on with one or both hands. Doctor Bronson 
says the volan coche is warmly recommended for dyspeptics, as it is guar- 
anteed to kill or cure them in a very short time. 

" The driver sits on the foot-board, very much as in a Canadian ca- 
leche, and if there is any baggage it is piled on a projecting frame behind 
the passengers. The carriage has a top to shelter passengers from sun and 
rain, and there are curtains to be let down or rolled up as one may wish. 

" Three mules are the regulation team for a volan coche. Tliev are 




A STREET IN MERIDA. 



4Y8 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

harnessed abreast, and under the control of a vigorous driver they get 
over the roads with commendable rapidity, when all things are considered. 
There is a great, deal of swing to the vehicle, and it overturns occasionally, 
though not often. The roads of Yucatan are not at all good ; one man 
told us they were made by Cortez three and a half centuries ago, and have 
never had a dollar of expenditure for repairs since they were constructed." 

As our friends went to the door they met their host, who had just 
descended from the carriage and was ready for them. Frank and Fred 
wondered if all four of them, the host and his three guests, were to ride in 
one coche, and while the wonderment continued another vehicle of the 
same kind came dashing around the corner. 

Their entertainer, Mr. Honradez, suggested that Doctor Bronson and 
himself would ride in one carriage, while the two youths occu]3ied the 
other. As they were to spend a night at the hacienda, each of the trav- 
ellers carried a small hand-bag, and these articles, added to some cushions 
which Mr. Honradez had thoughtfully placed in the seatless vehicles, added 
considerably to the comfort of the ride. 

Away they dashed along the rough streets of Merida and out through 
the thickly shaded suburbs. They met dozens of natives bringing into 
the city loads of country produce to sell in the market-place ; the bearers 
bent beneath their burdens, and many of them had travelled all night in 
order to reach the city in the morning. The most conspicuous of these 
porters were the sellers of ramon, the branches of a tree that serve as food 
for horses and mules, which eat the leaves and twigs of ramon as they do 
'grass or hay. According to its bulk, the stuff is very light, and a ramon- 
seller is completely hidden beneath his apparently enormous but really 
comfortable load. 

" Mr. Honradez made things interesting," said Fred, " by getting up 
a race between our two carriages. He promised two reals to the driver 
who would get first to a village which he named, and the fellows went at 
it in earnest. They stood up on the shafts of their vehicles and yelled at 
their mules ; at the same time they were not sparing of their whips, and 
the result was that the poor beasts went at a furious gallop for a mile or 
more. Our driver got in advance, and as we saw that the race would be 
kept up as long as the teams could run, Frank and I suggested to him that 
we would give him three reals to let the other man win. He immediately 
accepted the offer and dropped to the rear, shouting something in Maya 
to his competitor as the latter passed him. After that we went on at a 
more respectable pace, and were heartily glad that the breakneck speed, 
was not kept up. 



AT A HACIENDA. 



479 



" At the village, the name of which I have forgotten, we rested ten or 
fifteen minutes and then went on, reaching the hacienda just as the fore- 
noon was beginning to be uncomfortably warm. The great heat of Yuca- 
tan renders it desirable to make all journeys in the night as much as possi- 
ble, and hence our early start from Merida. 

"The hacienda covers a large area of ground, there being thousands of 
acres devoted to the culture of henequin. Then there is a considerable 
amount of sugar and corn grown on the place — enough for the use of all 
the employes, and something more besides. In the sugar-making industry 
the machinery is primitive, the cane being crushed in a mill propelled by 




A PRIMITIVE SUGAR-MILL. 



oxen in the old-fashioned way, and the sugar obtained from the juice by 
the processes of half a century ago. The real profit of the hacienda is in 
the production of fibre, and in this the latest machinery is in use. The old 
process of making fibre by hand is altogether discarded as unprofitable, 
and the stripping of the leaves of the henequin is performed by great 
machines built in the United States or England, and driven by a powerful 
steam-engine of American make. 

" The machinery is not at all complex, and it is evident that no great 
ingenuity was required to invent it. The scraper consists of a large wheel 
armed with strong and blunt knives all around its rim. The henequin 
leaves are pressed against this rim, and by means of a lever, worked by 



480 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN JMEXICO. 



tlie hand and foot of an Indian, tlie knives, drawn by the swiftly revolv- 
ing wheel, remove in an instant the pulp which covers the fibre and lay 
it bare. Considerable dexterity is required for this work, and we looked 
on in admiration at the deftness of the Indian who performed it. 

" The pulp being removed, the fibre is taken from the leaf in long 
strips like a ' hank ' of very fine silk thread of a beautiful green tinge. It 
is made into small bundles and placed in the sun to dry. In drying it 




RAILWAY-STATION IN THE HKNEQCIN DISTRICT. 



loses its color and becomes white and silky, and when thoroughly dried it 
is ready for baling. The only care requisite in the drying process is to 
see that it does not get wet by the rain, and that all its natural moisture is 
expelled. Unless this is the case it will ferment after baling, and fermen- 
tation means a great reduction in the commercial value of the article. 

"We watched the machine turning out the fibre, and then went to the 
baling-house, where the stuff was being put up by a cotton-press into bales 
of about 450 pounds each. In this condition it is shipped to market ; 
one scraper, requiring the labor of four men to tend it, will produce about 
one bale of fibre daily, provided the leaves are of fairly good size and 
quality and the workmen are not novices. The average value of hene- 
quin fibre is about $20 a bale, delivered at the nearest railway-station ; of 
course it has its ups and downs, like any other commodity in the world." 

After our friends had looked at the machines and partaken of a hearty 
breakfast — the fact is that the breakfast came before the inspection of the 
scraping and baling dej^artments — they took a siesta, according to the cus- 



HOW HENEQUIN IS CULTIVATED. 



481 



torn of the country, until the cool hours of the afternoon. Then tliey 
mounted horses and accompanied Mr. Honradez in a ride over the estate 
and through the fields of henequin plants. As they rode along, and 
paused occasionally to contemplate objects of especial interest, the gen- 
tleman explained some of the features of the business. 

" If you have decided to go into an enterprise of this sort," said he, 
"you must first get your land by buying it from the Government or a 
private owner, who is generally the descendant of somebody who obtained 
an immense grant in consequence of some real or fancied service to the 
Spanish Crown. The land is covered by a sort of scrub, which must be 
cleared away. The clearing is effected by cutting and burning, the cutting 
being done one season and the burning the next. Then the young plants 
are set out in holes dug in the thin soil ; they are set about eight feet 
apart, and take root at once. You have doubtless learned already that the 
plants are in condition for cutting when they are five years old, and will 
yield leaves annually for fifteen or twenty years. A good planter will 
so arrange it that. new plants are constantly coming to maturity; and this 
he will do by setting out a certain quantity of new ones every year." 




STOBEHOUSE AT THE HACIENDA. 



Frank asked how many leaves were required for a bale of fibre. 

"From six to eight thousand," was the reply, "according as they are 
large or small. Their size depends considerably upon the amount of rain 
Mdiich falls in the few weeks preceding the time they are cut." 

"Is all the fibre made at the hacienda sent out of the country?" que- 
ried Fred. 
31 



482 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 







" Not literally all," said the gentleman, " but for practical purposes the 
whole of it is exported. Four-fifths of our product is sent to the United 
States, where it is used for cordage, bagging, and many other things of the 
same sort, and most of the rest to Europe. There are two or three small 
factories here in Yucatan for making coarse cloth, ropes, and twine out of 

the fibre ; they are owned 
by Americans or English- 
men, and their machinery 
is of foreign make, mostly 
American. With the ex- 
ception of the overseer, en- 
gineer, and machinist, all the 
employes are natives, many 
of them being mestizo girls, 
who are as skilful as the 
girls of any other country 
in tending the looms where 
the cloth is woven. These 
factories purchase their fibre 
from the haciendas, but their 
consumption is small. The 
Indians use a great deal of fibre in making articles for their personal 
needs, but they generally scrape it by hand. They are very conservative, 
and if permitted to have their own way they would destroy every machine 
in the country before sunset to-morrow." 

It was evening before the ride was concluded, and the party returned 
to the hacienda, where a dinner of substantial character awaited them. 
Of course Mr. Honradez insisted that there was " no money in the busi- 
ness," and said he would be glad to sell out for less than what his estate 
had cost him. But Fred made a mental note of the fact that he did not 
name any price at which he would sell, artd that he lived in princely style 
both at the hacienda and in Merida. He had two sons at school in Paris, 
a daughter was being educated in Merida by a specially imported gov- 
erness, and the gentleman himself spent a good half of his time in other 
countries. From these facts, and from information of various kinds 
that reached them, the youths concluded that the heneqnin culture was 
profitable; and in this view they have many supporters both in the conn- 
try and out of it. 



A MORNTNO RUN. 



AN UNDERGROUND JOURNEY. 



483 



CHAPTER XXXI. 

FIRST NIGHT IN THE HAMMOCKS, — INSPECTING A Cj5'iV^07'J^. — UNDERGROUND 
WATERCOURSES AND LAKES. — HOW CENOTES ARE FORMED. — A SUBTERRA- 
NEAN BATH-HOUSE.— A iVO^Z^.— WATER TAX ON A DIRECT SYSTEM.— NATIVE 
SUPERSTITIONS.— A LIZARD THAT SHAKES HIS TAIL OFF.— BITING A SHADOW, 
AND WHAT COMES OF IT.— JOURNEY TO THE RUINS OF UXMAL.— A HEETZMEK. 
—YUCATEO MODE OF CARRYING INFANTS.— BREAKFAST AT A HACIENDA.— GAR- 
DEN AT UAYALKE.— EATING TROPICAL LIZARDS —FRED'S OPINION OF LIZARD 
STEWS.— BEES OF THE COUNTRY.— SUPERFLUOUS INDUSTRY OF YUCATEO BEES. 
—EVENING PRAYER AT A HACIENDA.— ARRIVAL AT UXMAL. 

"TT70TJLD you like to see a cenotef'' said Mr. Honradez, just before 

' * our friends retired for the night. 

" Certainly," replied Doctor Bronson for himself and the youths, while 
the latter wondered what a cenote was. 

" Well, I'll show you one in the morning." was the reply. Then there 




A CORNER OF THE HACIENDA. 



was an exchange of wishes all around for a pleasant slumber, and in a lit- 
tle while everybody was in bed, or rather in hammock. Our friends had 
brought their hammocks as part of their baggage, and when they were 
ready to retire they found those useful articles stretched in the corridor of 



484 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



the principal dwelling of the hacienda, in a place that afforded ample ven- 
tilation. 

Whether it was owing to the expected cenote or the unrestful charac- 
ter of a night's novitiate in a hammock we are unable to saj, but the 
youths were up somewhat earlier than usual and eager to begin the day. 

m 




AN UNDERGROUND VYALK. 



Doctor Bronson was not far behind them, and they did not have to wait 
long for their host. When he appeared he was followed by a mozo carry- 
ing an armful of towels, and after a hearty greeting led the way to a small 
house at alittle distance from the stables of the hacienda. 

Fred suggested to his cousin, while their host was in conversation with 
Doctor Bronson, that the cenote was probably some kind of game, and 
they would quite likely have it for breakfast. " Perhaps," said he, " they 
keep it alive and kill it when wanted, and tliis house may be the place 
where it is shut up." 

" I think it's something to wear," replied Frank, " and the house is the 
store-room. Possibly, though, it's some kind of vegetable like celery or 
onions. Anyway, we'll find out soon." 

They were speedily enlightened on the subject. On reaching the 
house in question, Mr. Honradez explained that it was the entrance to a 
private cenote of his own. 

"You are already aware," said he, "that there are no rivers in Yuca- 
tan, and have learned from experience that we have plenty of water, not- 
withstanding the absence of streams. Beneath the calcareous formation 
on which the wliole of the peninsula stands there are streams and lakes 



A SUBTERRANEAN BATH-HOUSE. 



485 



of water, whicli are reached througli natural or artificial openings in the 
surface rock. These openings, whether natural or artificial, are called 
cenotes, and some of them are of great depth. Sometimes they are mere 
pits or wells, and, on the other hand, there are cenotes which form large 
grottos with lakes of considerable area. The water is clear and cool and 
entirely wholesome. We use the cenotes for obtaining our supply of 
water and also for bathing. 

"This is our bathing-house," he continued, "and I've brought you 




FORMATION OF STALACTITES. 



here for your morning bath. You will find bathing-trousers in the rooms, 
and can undress and come down as soon as you like." 

He showed them the way into their dressing-rooms, and then disap- 
peared into a room of his own. "When the youths reappeared, in appro- 



486 THE BOY TKAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

priate costume, their host called to them from somewhere down in the 
interior of the earth, and they proceeded in the direction of the voice. 

By a sloping and slippery stair-way cut in the rock they descended 
some thirty-five or forty feet till they reached a pool of clear water over 
which the rock rounded in a high dome nearly to the surface. A hole 
two or three feet in diameter and covered with an iron grating opened in 
the centre of the dome, and gave light enough to show the interior of the 
place very fairly. Many stalactites hung from the roof, and stalagmites 
stood up wherever they could find standing room. From the grotto where 
our friends found themselves little nooks and small grottos opened, so 
that the spot was by no means unattractive. Numerous lizards clung to 
the rock or swam in the water ; and these crawling and slimy things took 
away many of the merits the bathing-place might have possessed. 

" Tlie lizards do no harm," said Mr. Honradez, " but they are not pleas- 
ant to look at, and we would gladly drive them out if we could. There 
is a curious bird called the 'toh' which lives in the cenotes ; it has a soft 
plumage, and sports a long tail of only two feathers, which have nothing 
on their stems until the very tip is reached. If you look sharp you may 
possibly see an eyeless hsh similar to the iishes wdiich are found in the 
Mammoth Cave in Kentucky." 

The youths looked in every direction, and though Frank thought he 
saw one of these strange members of the finny tribe he was unable to capt- 
ure it. Frank asked if the cenotes communicated with each other or 
were separately supplied from the rains sinking into the ground. 

" We cannot say that all of them are connected," was the reply ; " but 
it is certain that some of them are. Many contain streams with percepti- 
ble currents, and it has been observed that at times the cenotes are full of 
alligators, while at others none can be found there. As the alligator can- 
not pierce its way through solid rock, there must be channels which con- 
nect with large bodies of water where the alligators live." 

At the suggestion of alligators Frank and Fred intimated that they 
did not care to stay long in the water, and their search for eyeless fish was 
abandoned in favor of the larger game. Mr. Honradez laughed, and said 
there was not the slightest danger, as no alligator larger than a rat could 
possibly make its way into the place where they were, as all the entrance 
channels were very small. 

Thus reassured, they remained tranquil, and enjoyed the plunge and 
swim in the cool water. Meanwhile their host explained that these sources 
of water supply had been known from very ancient times; long before the 
Conquest the inhabitants built their towns near the water-holes, and at 



YUCATEO WATER SUPPLY. 



487 



the present time any one desiring to establisli a hacienda seeks first a good 
cenote, and locates his buildings near it. 

On returning from the bath the host showed tlieni the well which sup- 
plied the hacienda with water. Peons drew the water in buckets at the 
end of a long rope passing over a windlass, and poured it into a large 
trough, whence it was taken by the servants from the kitchen, or allowed 
to flow in pipes to the engine-house, stables, or wherever else it was 
needed. 

" In nearly every village throughout Yucatan," said Mr. Honradez, 
" you will find a well of this sort in the public square ; it is called a noria, 
and the usual mode of drawing water is by an endless rope passing over a 
wheel and carrying small buckets. These bring up the water from below, 
and as they turn over the wheel they pour their contents into a trough. 
The system is almost an exact copy of that in use in Egypt centuries 
before Yucatan was heard of. The rude machine is propelled by a mule 
walking in a circle and driven by a boy. The mule is invariably an old 
one, fit for no other work, and sometimes a horse or ox, likewise old and 
poor, is found in its place." 

"I suppose the village pays for the mule and the driver," one of 
the youths remarked. 




AT A NORIA. 



488 THE BOY TEAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

"Yes," was t"he reply; "and the payment is by direct taxation. Every 
person who takes a jar of water is expected to leave a handful of corn in 
payment. This corn goes for the support of the boy and the animal, and 
to judge by the condition of the beast, the lion's share of the tax is taken 
by the boy." 

The conversation about the curious wells of Yucatan came to an end 
with several stories concerning them. One was that in the town of Tabi 
there is a large cenote which shows down in the depths of the water when 
the sun is at the meridian the perfect figure of a palm-tree, trunk, leaves, 
and all being fully delineated. In another town there is a cenote where, 
according to the early chroniclers, any one dies instantly who enters the 
water without holding his breath. It is needless to say that bathing there 
is not at all popular. Other subterranean pools contain poisonous lizards 
which cause violent and even fatal headaches by merely biting the shadow 
of any person who passes them. Another lizard, when wounded, is said 
to throw its tail at its assailant ; it detaches and throws it a distance of 
several yards, and if it strikes the flesh will cause death. Many of the 
cenotes are reputed to be the haunts of demons and fairies, the bad spirits 
being much more numerous than the good ones. 

In the cool hours of the afternoon our friends started on their return 
to Merida, and late in the evening drew up in front of the hotel. Their 
host urged them to remain a week or two at the hacienda ; with tlie polite- 
ness customary to the country, he told them that the place and everything 
about it were theirs — a declaration which was certainly in earnest, so far 
as a prolonged visit was concerned. But they were anxious to continue 
their investigations of Yucatan, and having already arranged to go to 
Uxmal with an American gentleman residing at Merida, were unable to 
remain longer with Mr. Honradez. 

The second morning after their return they started for the ruins oi 
Uxmal, which are about sixty miles from Merida. Doctor Bronson and 
Mr. Burbank, his American friend, rode in one volan coche, and Frank 
and Fred in another. A cart with the needed supply of provisions and 
cooking utensils had left on the previous day, and was to meet them at 
Uxmal, which contains no hotel or other accommodation for travellers. ■ 
Lodgings are taken in some of the deserted and ruined buildings ; and 
with a suitable equipment and a supply of food, one can get along very 
comfortably. 

The road presented the same scenes as the one they had taken a few 
days before, and therefore does not need special description. At the first 
village on the road the vehicles halted to allow the panting mules to take 



VIEWING A HEETZMEK. 



489 




breath and water, and our friends descend- 
ed from their cramped positions to stretch 
their limbs. Mr. Bnrbank spoke a few words 
to some of the natives that gathered around %4 

them, and then asked the strangers to go with them to 
see a Jieetzmek. 

Wondering what a heetzmek was, they followed to a house a few yards 
away, where a woman was walking around the dwelling carrying a very 
young child astride her hip. Having completed the circuit, she repeated 
it again and again, till she had walked five times around the dwelling, car- 
rying the child as before. 

" This is a ceremony which corresponds to the christening of infants 
in other countries," said the gentleman. " The woman that you see is 
the baby's godmother; the position in which the Yucateos carry their 



490 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



children astride tlie liip is like that of India and some other Asiatic 
countries. The heetzniek is performed when the infant is about four 
months old. 

" The natives believe in the magic of the number five. You have seen 
the vv^oman vi^alk five times around the house as she carries the child. 




SCENE OF THE HEETZMEK. 



Five eggs have been buried in hot ashes, and as thej break tliej will 
rouse the five senses of the infant ; if they fail to open, it will be of only 
ordinary intelligence, but their breaking will insure extraordinary mental 
ability." 

" Probably," remarked Frank, " they take good care to have the ashes 
hot enough to make sure that the eggs will burst." 

" If they are as intelligent as they want the child to be, they certainly 
will," replied Mr. Burbank. " In addition to the egg test there is a fur- 
ther ceremony of putting into the infant's hands the implements it will 
use when matured. The godmother is held in great respect by the whole 
family, and especially by the child for whom she has stood sponsor." 

The heetzmek over,tJae journey was continued, the mules having rested 
sufiiciently. 

It was nine o'clock in the forenoon, and about twentv-five miles of the 



BREAKFAST AT NAYALKfi. 



4:91 



journey had been made when the walls of the hacienda of ITayalke came 
in sight. The appetites of the youths were on a keen edge, and Frank 
remarked to Fred that he could breakfast off the hind-leg of a donkey, if 
only that ordinarily unattractive viand were presented. 

" I think 1 scent breakfast," responded Fred. " They are famed for 
their hospitality in Yucatan, and we'll probably find what we want at this 
hacienda." 

His prediction was verified, for hardly had he ceased speaking when 
the foremost carriage turned towards the yard of the hacienda, followed 
very naturally by the other. The drivers unhitched their mules beneath 
a wide-spreading tree in front of the residence of the manager, and pro- 
ceeded to make themselves at home. The fnayoi'domo came out and wel- 
comed the strangers, and without waiting for a suggestion from Mr. Bur- 
bank, whom he knew, he sent a servant to order breakfast. In a very short 




GARDEN OF THE HACIENDA. 



time it was ready, and the travellers sat down ; tortillas, frijoles, stewed 
chicken, eggs, and fruit, disappeared in due course, and the keen appetites 
were keen no longer. 

" How about the posterior limb of the equus asinus now V whispered 
Fred to Frank, as they left the table. 



492 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

'"'■Non possumus,^'' was the only answer that occurred to Frank. His 
views on the snbject of edible things had materially changed in the last 
hour. 

The youths made note of the fact that the hacienda of Uayalke was 
a large and evidently a very prosperous one. The manager told them 
that they had- several thousand acres of land in henequin, and there were 
more than 1200 men and women employed about the establishment and 
in the fields. The engines and machinery were more ponderous and pow- 
erful than at the hacienda already described ; and the buildings of the 
establishment, together with the huts of the laborers, formed quite a set- 
tlement. There was a deep cenote, from which a troop of women were 
drawing water, by means of a wheel, with buckets on an endless rope ; as 
fast as their jars were filled they carried them away in the direction of 
the garden, where the water was used for keeping bright the orange and 
other trees that cannot live without water. 

The garden, thus invigorated, was like a spot of green in a desert, and 
reminded the youths of some of the oases they had visited in their Ori- 
ental journeyings. Frank compared it to Biskra, in the Great Sahara, and 
Fred declared that he saw a striking resemblance to some of the gardens 
at the edge of the Libyan Desert. Beyond the garden in every direction 
was the dry and repellent land covered with the hardy henequin, which 
needs no water, or but the merest trifle of it. 

,They did not see an idler about the place, every one from the manager 
down seeming to be fully occupied. Mr. Bnrbank said that no hacienda 
in the whole country was better managed than this, and there was none 
where the laborers were better satisfied with their employer and employ- 
ment. He added that here, as everywhere else in Tucatan, the laborers 
were constantly in debt to the establishment, and therefore were unable 
to quit work suddenly or " go on strike." A laborer who is in debt 
cannot change employers, unless the new one assumes the responsibility 
of the obligation to the old ; and to bring this about requires considerable 
negotiation. 

After a stay of two hours and more at the hacienda, the journey was 
continued. Six or seven miles farther on the travellers reached the cenote 
of Mucuyche, and made a brief halt to examine it. The cavern is about 
forty feet deep, and the entrance is surrounded by a garden kept green 
by the water drawn from the never-failing source. Our friends descended 
by means of steps cut in the rock. These steps were overhung by stalac- 
tites, which furnished convenient holding-ground for nests of swallows 
and hornets in great numbers. "What particularly pleased the youths 



LIZARD AS AN ARTICLE OB' FOOD. 



493 



was that tliey found here an abundance of tlie blind fishes that they 
sought in vain in their first exploration of underground Yucatan. There 
was the same abundance and variety of lizards and other creeping things 
as before ; some of them were of goodly size, and Fred learned that they 
were iguanas, and that they often appeared at table. 

"I suppose you drive them away as soon as possible," he replied. 
" They are not pleasant things to look at when one is eating." 

• " On the contrary," Mr. Burbank answered, " the iguana is a delicacy 
of which I have often partaken. He appears at table, not in his live 
state, but after passing through the hands of the cook." 

Fred thought he did not want any iguana then or at any other time, 
and his mind was firmly made up on the subject. His views changed two 




NATIVE TILLAGE NEAR UXMAL. 



or three days later when, after eating heartily of a delicious stew, which 
secured the praises of both Frank and himself, he learned that the stew 
aforesaid was nothing less than the despised iguana. He quietly remarked 
that great allowance must be made for prejudice, and then dismissed the 
subject. 

Two hours before sunset they reached a hacienda, where they received 



494 



THE BOY TEAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



the same cordial reception as at Uayalke. It had been intended to com- 
plete the journey to Uxmal that day, but as the hour was late and dark- 
ness would certainly overtake them before their destination could be 




HUNTING THE IGUANA. 



reached, Mr. Burbank decided to accept the pressing invitation of the 
mayordomo to spend the night there. 

The mules were unharnessed and led away to the stables, where they 
were bountifully fed on fresh grass cut and brought by the peons. There 
was a fine garden here filled with all sorts of tropical trees; and not the 



STINGLESS BEES IN YUCATAN. 



495 



least interesting sight in the place was a large number of beehives of a 
very primitive character. They were nothing else than sections of a hol- 
low log cnt off with a saw, and the ends closed with dried mud, or with 
boards fitted in, like the head of a barrel. 

Frank and Fred stood at a respectful distance as they looked at the 
beehives. They were mindful of the proverb which refers to the pru- 
dence of the burnt child ; and having been stung by the honey insects on 
several occasions, they did not 
wish a repetition of the expe- 
rience. Mr. Burbank walked fear- 
lessly up to the hives and called 
to the youths to follow him. 

"Please excuse us," replied 
Frank ; " the bees may recognize 
you, as you've been here before, 
but they don't know us." 

" Never mind them^'' the gen- 
tleman answered, with a laugh. 
" The bees in this country are 
stingless, and you run no risk in 
making their acquaintance." 

Thus assured, the youths ad- 
vanced and found themselves un- 
harmed. The bees circled about 
them in great numbers, but "left 
no sting behind." Mr. Burbank 
told them that the hives were 

emptied every six or eight weeks, and thus the bees were kept busy the 
year round. Why they collect honey in a country where flowers are per- 
petually in bloom he could not understand. " It speaks well for the in- 
dustry of the insect," he remarked ; " he has no occasion to work, and only 
does so from the force of ancestral habit. He has some imitators among 
the human race, but by no means so generally as many of us might wish." 

While discussing the subject of bee-keeping in Yucatan they were 
called to supper, which was an excellent one, of purely Mexican character. 
Turtle soup, chile con carne, frijoles, tortillas, and other national dishes 
were served in abundance, and the meal ended with honey from the bee- 
hives which they had investigated. Frank and Fred had observed a deli- 
cious fragrance as they entered the room where supper was served, and 
were unable at first to discover its origin. All the scent of the finest 




WHAT PERFUMES THE HONKY. 



496 



THE BOY TKAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



flowers of Yucatan seemed to be gathered there. They looked around 
for floral baskets or bouquets, but none were visible. When the honey 
was served they found that this it was which furnished the fragrance, and 
they asked Mr. Burbank about it. 

" You are quite right," he answered ; "it is the perfume of the honey 
that fills your nostrils. In some seasons of the year it is much greater 
than now ; it spreads over the whole house, and is as powerful as musk or 
any other famous perfume of the Old "World." 




THE SIERRA FROM THE GARDEN OF THE HACIENDA. 



Just as they rose from the supper-table the bell of the chapel rang for 
oracion, or evening prayer, which was attended by our friends and all the 
laborers and everybody else about the establishment. "When the service 
was ended each of the worshippers said '■^Buenos noches, senor'''' (good- 
night, sir) to each of the strangers. Everybody went early to bed, and by 
nine o'clock the whole place was in the deepest silence. This remark will 
not apply to all seasons of the year ; during the periods of fiestas, or fes- 
tivals, late hours are generally kept, and early rising is not assiduously 
practised. 

The hammocks of the travellers were slung in a corridor, and the free 



CKOSSING THE SIEEEA. 497 

circulation of air and the coolness of night, together with the fatigues of 
a long ride over rough roads, insured sound sleep. In the morning choc- 
olate was served before six o'clock, and a little after that hour the carriages 
were on their way. No direct payment for the hospitality of the hacienda 
was in order, but indirect compensation was made in the shape of fees to 
the mayordomo and the servants who had waited upon the strangers. 

Soon after leaving the hacienda the road ascended, and Frank ascer- 
tained from the driver, who spoke Spanish fairly, that they were climbing 
the sierra, a hilly ridge hardly worthy the name of mountain, though 
called so by courtesy. It is the highest ground of Yucatan, and therefore 
the inhabitants are to be excused for calling it a mountain, as they would 
otherwise be without one. 

From the top of the ridge they looked over a considerable area of 
country covered with the scrub forest for which the country is noted, a:nd 
dotted here and there with the ruins of cities, which indicate the existence 
of a numerous po]3ulation in previous centuries. Down the other side of 
the ridge they went at breakneck pace, the coches being tossed from side 
to side with such violence that the youths were compelled to hang on with 
both hands to prevent being thrown out and left by the road-side. Sev- 
eral times the vehicle narrowly escaped overturning ; and this, too, close to 
chasms where an upset would have sent them almost perpendicularly 
down a hundred feet or so, and reduced vehicle, mules, passengers, and 
baggage to an average value of fifty cents a bushel. And the curious thing 
about the wliole business was that on reaching level ground the driver 
reined in his team and proceeded at a more dignified pace. 




SIDE OF ANCIENT ALTAR. 

32 



498 



THE BOY TKAVELLEES IN MEXICO. 



CHAPTER XXXII. 

A ROMANTIC LEGEND.— HOW THE KING WAS OVERCOME BY THE WITCH.— VISIT- 
ING THE DWARF'S HOUSE; ITS POSITION AND PECULIARITIES. — HOUSE OF 
THE NUNS; ITS EXTENT AND CONSTRUCTION.— C^«^ DEL GOBERNADOK— 
DESTRUCTIVE AGENCIES AT WORK.— AT HOME IN A ROYAL PALACE.— MAYA 
ARCHES.— TROPICAL TREES AND PLANTS.— DOUBLE-HEADED DOG OF UXMAL. 
— GARAPATAS AND THE ANNOYANCE THEY CAUSED.— INSECT PESTS OF YUCA- 
TAN.— DR. LE PLONGEON AND THE STATUE OF CHAC-MOOL. — GHOSTS AND 
GHOST STORIES.— BIRDS OF YUCATAN.— AN ANCIENT WATERING-PLACE. 



after 



nine o'clock they reached the hacienda of Uxmal, where they were 
invited to breakfast. The invitation was accepted, and immediately 
the conclusion of the meal the party continued to the ruins, which 

were about a mile farther 
on. The mayordomo invited 
them to make the place their 
home as long as they were in 
the neighborhood. Mr. Bur- 
bank gave an evasive answer 
to the invitation, at the same 
time earnestly thanking their 
host for his courtesy. To de- 
cline absolutely might seem a 
rudeness, and to accept would 
not accord with their arrange- 
ment to live at the ruins of 
the ancient city. 

On reaching the ruins the 
party halted to consider what 
should first be investigated. 
Doctor Bronson asked the 
youths if they had any sug- 
gestions to make, whereupon 
Frank intimated that he de- 
sired above everything else 

AKCHWAT or LAS MONJAS, UXMAL. tO vlsit tllC Dwarf's HOUSB. 




THE WITCH AND THE KING. 



499 




HACIENDA OF UXMAL. 



"Why so?" queried the Doctor. 

" On account of the very pretty legend connected with it," replied 
Frank. "It is given by Stephens, Charnay, and others who have been 
here, but the best form of it is by Mrs. Le Plongeon." 

Tlien he read the following from " 'New and Old in Yucatan :" 

"'During the reign of a certain Maya king there lived a woman who 
was both feared and respected, for she was a wonderful sorceress. A son 
was born to her, and he became a great favorite, for he was good and 
clever, though very small — in fact, a dwarf. Finall)^ he became so popu- 
lar — probably the people fawned on him to please the formidable witch — 
that the King grew jealous, and sought his destruction by giving him diffi- 
cult tasks, so that, failing, he might be accused of disobedience. But, 
thanks to his mother, the boy always succeeded. 

" 'One day the King, out of patience, ordered the boy to build in one 



600 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

night a high mound and a house on the top. Tlie youth was at his wits' 
end, but went, as usual, to seek maternal aid. "Oh, mother, mother! I 
shall surely die, for the King has ordered me to do more than I can pos- 
sibly accomplish ;" and he told her his trouble. 

" ' " Never mind, my child, don't be alarmed. In the morning the 
house will be there." 

"'It was, and from that day to this has been called the Dwarf's House. 
The King was enraged. He sent for the dwarf, " I am greatly pleased 
with the house. ISTow I want to break six cocoyoles" (small and very hard 
cocoanuts about the size of a walnut) "on your head, and then I will give 
you my daughter in marriage." 

" ' The dwarf declined to accept the offer on these conditions. The 
monarch insisted. " I want you to marry my daughter, and you must 
accept my conditions." 

" ' Again the poor dwarf sought his mother in despair. " There is no 
hope for me now." 

" ' " Oh yes, there is," replied the clever witch. " You go back to 
his Majesty and tell him that you accede to his request provided he after- 
wards allows you to break six cocoyoles on his own head." 

" ' And to this the King publicly agreed, because he was determined 
to kill the dwarf with the first cocoyol. 

" ' Then the sorceress rubbed her son's head with something that made 
it so hard nothing could possibly hurt it. 

"'The King arrived, and the dwarf, in the presence of all the peoj^le, 
laid his head on a stone. With another the King broke the cocoyol on the 
head of his intended victim — broke all six of them — but the dwarf rose 
unhurt. 

" ' Then it was the turn of the monarch to lay his proud head down, 
and as his scalp was not prepared, the dwarf broke his skull, and thus got 
rid of his enemy. The agreement had been faithfully carried out, so the 
public had nothing to say. The dwarf tlien married the princess and 
became king.' " 

Of course the marriage of the dwarf to the princess was the end of the 
story, and Frank so intimated. As the Dwarf's House was visible from 
where they stood— in fact it is the most prominent object as the ruins are 
approached — the party went to it at once. 

" It stands on an artificial mound about 100 feet high," wrote Fred, in 
describing the visit, " and therefore was quite a task for the dwarf to ac- 
complish in a single night. Do you doubt the truth of the story ? Well, 
here is the mound with the house upon it, and anywhere around here 3-ou 



CEREMONIES OF SACRIFICE. 



501 



may gather cocoyoles in whatever number you Hke. Could there be any 
further proof needed than these facts ? 

"We cUmbed to the top by a broad staircase of stone, and it was by 
no means an easy climb. The steps are narrow and some of them have 
become displaced, so that we were all tired enough to sit down when we 
reached the house. The tradition is that when the priests threw the 
bodies of the victims of sacrifice from the altars they rolled to the bottom 
of the steps without stopping. The staircase is very wide, sixty or sev- 
enty feet ; and this great width, combined with the narrow steps, makes it 




DWARF S HOUSE AND EAST WING OF THE CASA DE LAS MONJAS. 



a dangerous one to ascend. A single misstep would send one rolling 
downward, like the sacrificial victims. 

"The house was evidently a place of worship, and in this respect 
corresponds to the teocallis of the Mexicans, which we have already de- 
scribed. Although generally known as the Dwarf's House, it is frequent- 
ly called the House of the Prophet ; and there is a tradition that prophe- 
cies were issued from it, as from the temples of ancient Greece and 
Home. 

"It is seventy feet long and twelve wide, and is covered with sculpt- 
ure, some of it greatly injui-ed by time, while the rest is well preserved. 
There are many hieroglyphics that form an interesting study for the arch- 
{Eologist. Several travellers have given translations of them, and I be- 



502 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

lieve that each one is able to demonstrate that liis predecessors were all 
wrong. We will not attempt to decipher them, as we do not wish to 
run the risk of our work being overturned by the next comer. 

" The building has three rooms ; Doctor Bronson says that some of 
the sculptures on the walls of these rooms are masonic symbols, and he 
wonders if the I'ace that erected the building were acquainted with the 
mystic rite. Who can tell? 

" Lower down is a sanctuary of two small but very high-ceiled rooms, 
and having some fine sculpture on the outside. Over the entrance of the 
sanctuary is the carved head of a mastodon, showing that the people were 
acquainted with that animal, or at all events had his correct likeness. 
There are masonic emblems on a cornice that extends around the sanct- 
uary, and on the lower part of the cornice are rings cut in stone, from 
which curtains were suspended during the ceremonies that were per- 
formed inside the building. 

"We spent an hour or more inspecting the building and its sculptures, 
and then gave quite a little time to the magnificent panorama that was 
revealed from the top of the mound ; indeed w^e had considerable enjoy- 
ment of it while resting from the fatigue of the ascent. 

" The pyramid rises from a plain, and at the elevation where we stood 
or sat we embraced with our eyes a wide area. All the principal build- 
ings of Uxmal were at our feet, and we looked and listened attentively 
while Mr. Burbank pointed them out. 

" Nearest and to the west is the Oasa de las Hon j as, or ' House of the 
!N"uns,' but whether it was really a nunnery or is only called so for con- 
venience we are unable to say. On a broad and high terrace to the south 
is the Cas^ del Oobernador, or 'House of the Governor,' and there is a 
building close by called the ' House of the Turtles.' Turtles did not live 
there, but figures of them are on the sculptures that adorn the build- 
ing. There were several other heaps of ruins, of which I noted the 
names of <d\Af two, the ' House of the Old Woman,' and the ' House of 
the Pigeons.' 

"When we had finished our inspection of the Dwarfs House we de- 
scended the steeply sloping pyramid, picking our way very carefully to 
avoid accidents. Except where the stones are so thick as to afford no 
clinging ground for vegetation, the sides of the mound are covered with 
bushes, which are occasionally cut away by the proprietor of Uxmal. 

" We went first to the House of the Nuns, which is a building about 
280 feet square, with a large court-yard in the centre. There is a high 
gate-way on the south side by which we entered the house ; the house has 



HIEROGLYPHIC SNAKES. 



503 



eighty-eight rooms or apartments opening into the conrt-jard, but no 
doors opening to the outside. As we entered the court our attention was 
drawn to the sculptures on the interior fagades of the building ; on one 
side there is a representation of two enormous serpents, so immense in 
size that they run the whole length of the edifice, their exact measure- 
ment being 173 feet. Their bodies are twisted together, and in the spaces 
between the folds are many strange hieroglyphics. We seemed to be 
once more in India, or some other Eastern country, where serpent wor- 
ship once prevailed and is by no means unknown at the present day. 




rA9ADE OF WEST WING OF CASA DE LAS MONJAS. 



"Mr. Burbank told us that the ruins have suffered a good deal in 
recent years, and at the rate they are being destroyed there will be little 
more than a few heaps of rubbish remaining here when the next century 
begins. linearly every visitor to them thinks he must carry away some- 
thing, and most people are not at all particular about defacing the hiero- 



504 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



glyphics or other sculptures. A large quantity of stone has been taken 
from the ruins for building purposes at the Uxmal hacienda ; and the 
Indians do not seem to have any reverence, or but very little, for the 
homes of their by-gone ancestors. There are the usual traditions about 
buried treasures in the buildings, and every little while somebody tries to 




GROUND-PLAN OF LAS MONJAS. 



find them. ]^othing of value has ever been discovered, but the digging 
that forms a necessary part of every search is a .serious injury to the 
sculptures and walls. 

" The hand of man is ably aided in the work of destruction by the 
tropical vegetation ; around the building it is so thick that all access 
would soon be cut off if the rapidly growing mass were not occasionally 
cut away in places where paths are desired. The roof is overgrown with 
yuccas and other plants, that convert it into a sort of hanging garden ; their 
roots, swelling in the crevices between tlie stones, are rapidly breaking 
down the walls and converting the whole into a shapeless mass of ruins." 



LODGINGS AMONG THE RUINS. 



505 



The next spot of interest was the Casa del Gobernador, which has 
been alluded to in Fred's account of the view from the top of the pyra- 
mid. Our friends went there and found not only an extensive ruin, but 
what was of practical importance, the servants that had been sent on in 
advance from Merida with the cart and camping equipments. They 
had already taken possession of the best rooms in the house, and were 
clearing them out for occupation. 

One room served for kitchen and servants' quarters, and the other for 
parlor, dining-saloon, dormitory, salon de conversaoion, reception-room, 
library, cafe, art-gallery, and wardrobe. A flat stone made a very fair 




CASA DEL GOBERNADOR. 



table, and other stones served in place of chairs ; hammocks were slung by 
means of ropes from one wall to another, and altogether the place was 
comfortable enough for a temporary home. 

The kitchen apparatus was not extensive, but it sufficed for the prepa- 
ration of satisfactory meals, doubtless rendered appetizing by the exercise 



506 THE BOY TEAVELLEES IN MEXICO. 

wliicli the strangers were getting in the open air. In the middle of the 
day it was too hot to wander about a great deal; the time was passed in 
writing, reading, or possibly in the siesta, for which all troj)ical and semi- 
tropical countries are more or less famed. 

It fell to Frank to speak of the Governor's House, which he did as 
follows : 

" The Governor's House, or Hoyal Palace, as it is also called, is on the 
uppermost of three terraces (it could not well be on either of the lower 
ones), and is 322 feet long by 39 in depth. The building is about 25 feet 




CO 40 so so 10 



GROUND-PLAN OF CASA DEL GOBERNADOR. 



high, and had a flat roof. Some of the ceilings were supported by trian- 
gular arches, and others by beams ; the beams have rotted away and disap- 
peared, but the stone arches remain intact. The roof was originally cov- 
ered with cement. The ancient Mayas seem to have possessed a ver}'- good 
quality of cement ; but it was hardly equal to that of some of the Eastern 
nations. 

" The top of the building is overgrown with yuccas and other plants, 
just like the House of the Nuns, and from the top of each of the three tow- 
ers small trees shoot high into the air. There is not much ornament on 
the lower part of the walls, but the upper portion is profusely decorated ; 
it is thought that the walls, as high as the cornice, about ten feet from the 
base, were covered with stucco or cement ; and this has been removed by 
the climate, or possibly torn off during the wars that may have prevailed 
here. 

"The cornice runs around the building just above the three door-ways 
that give entrance to the place. Above this cornice the whole wall is cov- 
ered with sculpture, and I can best describe it by copying what was writ- 
ten by Stephens nearly fifty years ago : ' There is no rudeness or barbarity 
in the design or proportions ; on the contrary, the whole wears an air of 
architectural symmetry and grandeur ; and as the stranger ascends the 
steps and casts a bewildered eye along its open and desolate doors, it is 
hard to believe that he sees before him the work of a race in whose epi- 
taph, as written by historians, they are called ignorant of art, and said to 
have perished in the rudeness of savage life. If it stood at this day on its 



PECULIAKITY OF THE "MAYA AECH." 



507 



grand artificial terrace in Hyde Park, or the Garden of the Tuileries, it 
would form a new order, I do not say equalling, but not unworthy to 
stand side by side with, the remains of Egyptian, Grecian, and Roman 
art.' 

" One of the interesting features of the Governor's House and other 
buildings of Uxmal is the ' Maya Arch,' which is formed without a key- 
stone. The sides are built up with stones projecting one beyond the other, 
and a flat stone is laid across the top. In spite of its violation of the prin- 
ciples on which builders say the arch is based, the work of the Mayas has 
withstood the ravages of time to a remarkable degree. Specimens of this 
arch are found here in the Governor's House, and in other parts of Uxmal ; 












^,4?M0^!r^^i?^iJlf.^ 







STATUE OF DOUBLE-HEADED DOG, UXMAL. 



508 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

in fact they can be seen at Palenqne, Chiclien-Itza, and other historic 
places in Yucatan and neighboring countries. The archway of Las Monjas 
is an admirable specimen of this work, and we send yon a photograph of 
it so that you may judge for yourself. 

" There was formerly a stone figure here representing a double-lieaded 
dog, but it has been carried away. It was found in a mound of earth at 
the corner of the second terrace, and not far from the House of the Tur- 
tles. While we were walking about the terrace Mr. Burbank cautioned 
us not to fall into one of the ancient reservoirs, or storehouses, which are 
much easier to enter than to leave. They are a sort of stone jug on a 
colossal scale — vaults or cisterns ten or twelve feet square and as many 
deep, with an opening two feet across at the top. 

" A friend of his fell into one of these jugs while incautiously walking 
about. He was stout in figure, and slipped into the hole, with no surround- 
ing space to spare. When they came to get him out it was necessary for 
him to remove the greater part of his clothing in order that he could be 
hoisted from his prison ; and even then the work w-as not accomplished 
until the sides of the opening had been greased. At any rate, that's the 
story Mr. Burbank told us. 

"We have mentioned the House of the Turtles, which is so called on 
account of a row of turtles ornamenting its fayade. It is on the corner of 
the second terrace, and is supposed to have been the kitchen of the Palace. 
Fred thinks tliat if it was really a kitchen the ornamentation will go far 
to prove that the governor, whoever he was, had a fondness for turtle 
soup, like a good many governors of modern times. Wouldn't it be funny 
if turtle sonp should prove to have had its origin in Yucatan ? Doctor 
Bronson says that though the Yucateos may have had the article, they did 
not invent it, as turtle soup was known to the ancient Romans many cen- 
turies ago." 

Frank and Fred found that a residence in a royal palace had its draw- 
backs, especially when night came and the bats appeared in large numbers. 
Furthermore, there were lizards and other creeping things in great abun- 
dance, and some of them were especially repulsive. 

One of the worst annoyances of their visit to Uxmal was that when- 
ever they moved about they became covered with garapatas. The gara- 
pata is a tick so small that it is hardly perceptible to the naked eye, but 
it is capable of making a bite or sting like that of a red ant or a hot 
needle. Frank and Fred were reminded of their troubles in Ceylon, when 
they became covered with land-leeches in their journey to Adam's Peak. 
Mr. Burbank told them that the best antidote to the garapatas was to rub 



INSECT PESTS OF YUCATAN. 



509 



one's body with petroleum, before venturing where the insects abounded, 

and that they should change their clothing every time they came in from 

a walk. 

Here is Frank's note concerning these pests of Yucatan : 

" They cause a frightful itching, and whenever the fangs of the insect 

break off in the skin, and they do so very often, the wound is liable to 




DECORATIONS OVER DOOR-WAY OF CASA DEL GOEERNADOR. 



fester and be some time in healino-. Their attentions are not confined to 
humanity ; they attack dogs and .otlier animals, and the poor creatures are 
sometimes killed by them. M. Charnay gives an account of how a pet 
dog belonging to the wife of the consul at Merida suffered from the bitfes 



510 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



of tlieee insects while out one day in the country. The little animal rolled 
on the grass and howled in agony, but the garapatas kept on with their 
biting as though it was all fun to them." 

Fred asked Mr. Burbank how many kinds of insects, troublesome and 
otherwise, Yucatan could boast, but the gentleman was unable to say with 
any exactness. " There is enough of them to go around," said he, " among 




AN UNWELCOME VISITOR. 



the whole population, and some varieties go around with surprising activ- 
ity when the heat and languor of the climate are considered. And if you 
camp out and sleep on the ground you may quite possibly be roused by a 
snake trying to get into bed with you and coiling around your arm or leg." 

Our young friends were especially ambitious to discover a statue or 
some other interesting relic of the by-gone race, and so make themselves 
distinguished as explorers. But their inquiries as to the possibility and 
advisability of such a proceeding were greatly discouraged when they 
learned of the experience of Dr. Le Plongeon. 

"You doubtless saw the statue of Chac-Mool, the god of fire, in the 
museum at the capital ?" said Mr. Burbank. 



HOW A STATUE WAS CONFISCATED. 



511 



" Certainly," replied Fred. 

" Well," continued Mr. Burbank, " Dr. Le Plongeon found that statue 
at Cbichen-Itza, where he made extensive excavations at his own expense. 
It was nine feet in length — too large to be hidden in his coat-pocket, or 
in any other ordinary way — and therefore he could not take it out of the 
country. The Government claims all antiquities, no matter by whom 
they are found, and the officials immediately took possession of Dr. Le 
Plongeon's ' find,' and paid no attention to his protest. 

" The same explorer dug up a statue here in the summer of 1881, and 
describes it as the finest ever discovered in Central America. He and his 
wife were working alone when the treasure was unearthed, and with the 
recollections of the Chac-Mool experience before them, they immediately 
covered up the precious discovery, and removed all trace of their work. 




STATUE OP CHAC-MOOL. 



"Learning wisdom by their experience, I would advise against any 
serious expenditure of time and money in exploring the remains of Uxmal 
or any other of the sixty or more ruined cities of Yucatan. If you find 
anything of value it will go into the hands of the Mexican Government 
and adorn the museum at the national capital. Antiquities of no value 
can be taken to 'New York or elsewhere after paying certain duties upon 
them for exportation." 

Frank and Fred thought the advice excellent, and thanked Mr. Bur- 
bank for it. They confined their investigations to making sketches and 
photographs of the sculptures, and measuring the buildings and the apart- 
ments in them. They did not undertake any digging operations, and lis- 
tened calmly to the stories of the natives concerning the vast amount of 
treasures supposed to be concealed in the ruins of the buildings. 



512 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

It may be remarked here that the natives were very unwilling to re- 
main around the ruins at night, and all of them who could do so hurried 
to the hacienda of Uxmal immediately after sunset. They believe that 
the ghosts of the former occupants revisit the ruins at night, and treat 
with great severity any one whom they find there. 

In support of their belief they told several stories of how Indians who 
had ventured to spend the night in the ruins had disappeared and no trace 
of them had ever been found. In other cases their dead bodies were 
found in some of the rooms of the old buildings, and in each instance the 
marks on their throats showed that they had been strangled at the hands 
of the ghosts. A dead Indian was found in a tree-top, where it was impos- 
sible to have climbed, or been placed by human hands ; the inference was 
that the ghosts had killed the rash man, and then carried his body into the 
tree-top as a warning to future intruders. 

For cooking and drinking purposes our friends obtained water from a 
small pond, or agitada^ which is supposed to have been the watering-place 
of Uxmal in the days of its glory. It is now partly overgrown with 
aquatic plants, and is a favorite haunt of the birds, or, rather, one of their 
haunts, as there are several ponds in the neighborhood of the ruins. 

By skilful use of a shot-gun, which formed part of their outfit, the 
youths obtained several ornithological specimens, which they carefully 
skinned and preserved. Like the majority of tropical birds, their plumage 
was brilliant, that of the crimson flycatcher being especially so. Coots 
were numerous, and formed an agreeable addition to the bill of fare of 
Uxmal, though our friends were unanimous in the belief that the coots of 
Yucatan were far behind their namesakes of the Northern States in the 
matter of edibility. 



MAYA ARCHES. 



RUINED CITIES NEAR UXMAL. 



513 



CHAPTER XXXIIL 

A CHAPTER ON ARCHEOLOGY.— NUMBER AND EXTENT OF THE RUINED CITIES 
OF YUCATAN.— MAYAPAN, THE ANCIENT CAPITAL.— PYRAMID OF MAYAPAN.— 
AKt AND ITS FICOTA—A'N ANCIENT WHIPPING-POST.— PYRAMIDS AT AKfi.— 
HISTORICAL CONUNDRUMS.— KABAH AND ITS MOUND.— SCULPTURE OF A MAN 
ON HORSEBACK.— CHICHEN-ITZA.— CHURCH, NUNNERY, CASTLE, AND TENNIS- 
COURT AT CHICHEN.— EXTENT AND CHARACTER OF THE SCULPTURES.— STORY 
OF THE CONQUEST OF CHICHEN.— SKILFUL RETREAT OF THE SPANISH CAP- 
TAIN.— OTHER RUINED CITIES.— IDOLS OF COPAN.— PROBABILITIES OF CITIES 
YET TO BE DISCOVERED. 

AS before stated, the most interesting of the ruined buildings of Ilxmal 
- are the Dwarf's House, the House of the Nuns, and the Governor's 
House, and these three we have ah-eadj described. The ruins of other 
cities are not far away, and when they had finished with Uxmal our friends 
proceeded to visit those that were the most convenient. The information 




TUCATEO SCULPTURE. 



obtained in their personal explorations, added to what they gathered from 
residents of the country and the books already mentioned, was embodied 
in the following joint work of Frank and Fred : 

" There are not less than sixty ruined cities in Yucatan whose location 
33 



514 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



is known ; who can tell how many more are hidden in the dense forests 
of the rarely visited country of the rebellious Indians, and awaiting the 
efforts of the explorers ? 

'' To describe all these ruins would be a difficult task ; and besides, it 
would be dreary reading for anybody who is not an eager student of 
archaeology. We will touch only upon some of the most important. 




GREAT MOUND AT MATAPAN. 



" About thirty miles from Merida are the ruins of Mayapan, which is 
said to have been the ancient capital of the country. They are spread 
over an extensive plain, and though covering a considerable area, are less 
interesting than the ruins of Uxraal. The ground is covered with a dense 
growth of trees and plants, and every explorer who devotes any attention 
to Mayapan is obliged to incur quite an outlay for labor in cutting paths 
and clearing up the ground. We did not go there, but gathered our in- 
formation from a gentleman who has been on the spot several times. 

" He told us that the most conspicuous object at Mayapan is a pyra- 
mid, not unlike that on which the Dwarf's House at ITxmal was built. It 



AN ANCIENT EDIFICE. 



515 



is 100 feet square at the base, and about sixty feet high ; it is ascended 
by a stone staircase similar to tliat of the pyramid of the Dwarf's House 
and about twenty-five feet wide. There is no building on the top of the 
mound, only a stone platform, and explorers do not agree as to whether 







CIRCULAR EDIFICE AT MAYAPAN. 



there was ever any edifice there or not. Excavations have been made at 
several places in the mound, and subterranean chambers discovered. Their 
use cannot be positively determined ; of course there are the usual stories 



516 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

about the concealment of treasures within the mounds, but nothing has 
ever been found there. 

" It is the general belief that most of the buildings of Mayapan were 
of wood or sun-dried brick, instead of stone, as most of them have disap- 
' peared. There is one curious-looking edifice still in position — a circular 
structure twenty-five feet in diameter, and standing on a pyramidal foun- 
dation thirty-five feet high. If you want a detailed description of it look 
in Baldwin's 'Ancient America,' where there is a picture which shows 
how it looks to-day. 

" Dr. Le Plongeon made an extensive and careful study of Mayapan, 
which is supposed to have been founded by the Mayas in the fifth cen- 
tury. There was a constant warfare for centuries between the rulers of 
Mayapan and Uxmal, and the fortunes of war alternated from one to 
the other. According to the chronicles. King Cocom of Mayapan, with 
all his sons but one, was murdered by his nobles in 1446, nearly a hun- 
dred years before the Spaniards conquered the country, and fifty years 
before America was discovered by Columbus. When the Spaniards came 
they found Mayapan in ruins, and the early Spanish writers obtained the 
traditions concerning it from the people in the surrounding country. 

"The Mayas say that the first man of the human race was made out 
of earth and grass, the former supplying his flesh and bones, and the latter 
his skin." 

At this point Frank asked if the "greenness" of many members of 
the race was attributable to their grassy origin, as given by the Mayas. 
Fred dismissed the question as trifling and irrelevant, and then the his- 
tory proceeded. 

"Dr. Le Plongeon was convinced that the Mayas had a knowledge 
of astronomy, as he found two stone columns on the platform of the 
mound with a line marked in the pavement between them. These col- 
umns, or stelse, are perfectly ' Oriented ' according to the points of the 
compass, and by means of them the hour of the day could be told, and 
also the time of the sun's declination. The apparatus was similar to that 
of the ancient Egyptians and Chaldeans ; the Mayas divided their astro- 
nomical year into twelve months of thirty days each, and added five days 
when the sun reached its greatest declination and was said to be ' at rest.' 

" The doctor found in the ruins of Mayapan a stone slab bearing in- 
scriptions which referred to the god of fire ; these inscriptions seem to 
have been identical with those of the ancient Egyptians for their sun 
god, and of the Assyrians for their corresponding deity. Certainly it is 
a very curious circumstance that these people, so far apart in time and dis- 



EXPLORATION OF AKfi. 



517 



tance, seem to have hit upon the same form of worship and of astronom- 
ical calculations. 

" We will leave Mayapan now and turn to another ruined city called 
Ake, These ruins are about the same distance from Merida as those of 
Mayapan, the former lying to tlie east and the latter to the south. They 
are on a hacienda belonging to Don Alvaro Peon, who is always ready to 
facilitate the visit of any one who desires to explore the ruins. 




SCULPTURED HEAD OF YUCATAN. 



" The ruins include those of several large buildings, which are pre- 
sumed to have been palaces, a small pyramid and a large one, together 
with some other structures, all grouped around an open space or plaza. 
In the centre of this plaza is a stone pillar called ^ picote j and what do 
you suppose was its use ? 

"It was a stone of punishment, or whipping - post ; it was in use 
throughout this country both before and after the Conquest, and, in fact, it 
is not unknown to-day. The culprit was stripped and tied to this post and 
then publicly whipped, very much as in some of the United States within 
the memory of men now living. M. Charnay says there is a picote in 



518 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

use to-day at the Indian village of Tumbala, near Palenque, and presum- 
ably it can be found in other Indian villages. The funny part of the 
business is that the Indians believe a sound thrashing at the picote makes 
a man's conscience clean, and to secure such a state of mental affairs they 
often come forward and ask to be whipped when nobody knows of any- 
thing to entitle them to punishment. 

" We don't care for any picote just now, and so we'll drop it. There 
is at Ake a small pyramid about forty feet high, and built of large stones 
that were put together without cement. There was once a house on top, 
but it has crumbled away, and the sides of the pyramid are a good deal 
dilapidated. Then there is a large pyramid with a broad tojD, and on this 
top are three rows of stone pillars about ten feet apart one way and 
fifteen feet the other. The esplanade on which these pillars stand meas- 
ures fifty by two hundred feet ; the pillars are built up of flat stones 
about three feet square by fifteen inches thick, and there are ten stones in 
each perfect pillar. We have said there are thirty-six pillars, but only 
twenty-nine are standing, and from several of these some of the stones 
have been displaced. 

" 1*^0 w, what was the use of these pillars ? This is a conundrum that 
has excited all visitors, and nobody has been able to make an explanation 
that has not been overthrown by some one else. Some have argued that 
the pillars and the stones of wMch they are composed were intended to 
mark certain epochs of time ; one writer says the pillars were built up by 
placing single stones there at intervals, so arranged that each pillar would 
take 200 years for its construction. According to this theory, the erec- 
tion of the thirty-six pillars would cover a period of 7200 years, and thus 
make the foundation of the edifice older than that of the oldest of the 
pyramids of Egypt. 

" Opposed to this theory is that of the explorers who believe the pil- 
lars, or columns, were the supports of the roof of a temple. The roof, 
they say, was of peris.hable material and disappeared ages ago, but the 
stones remain. The columns are from fourteen to sixteen feet high, and 
the work of putting the stones in place was by no means small. The 
builders understood architectural principles, and that they lived and died 
long, long ago there can be no doubt. When it was that they lived no 
one has yet been able to say positively. 

"In some of its features this great pyramid of Ake is one of the 
wonders of Yucatan. The platform on which the columns are ranged is 
reached by a stone staircase that seems to have been built for giants. It 
measures 137 feet from one side to the other, the steps are more than 



A KEMARKABLE MONUMENT. 



519 




PILLARS OF GREAT GALLERF, AKE. 



four feet from front to rear, and each, step is sixteen inches high. When 
you bear in mind that the steps of a staircase of modern construction are 
usually about nine inches high, you will understand what a ' getting up- 
stairs ' it is to ascend this great pyramid. 

" A fierce battle was fought here between the Spaniards and Mayas at 
the time of the Conquest, and the remains of a Spanish fort or redoubt 
can be distinctly traced. 

" From Ake we will turn to Kabah, which lies a few miles to the south 
of Uxmal. Kabah was a large and very old city. How large it was no- 
body can say exactly, as a dense forest covers the site, and a great deal of 
cutting is required to visit any part of it. Every fresh visitor to Kabah 
discovers something new whenever and wherever he penetrates the forest. 
Some of the recent explorers have found many ruined buildings that 
escaped the observation of Stephens, who thought he had examined the 
entire extent of the city. 



520 



THE BOY TRAVELLEES IN MEXICO. 




HEAD OF INCENSE-BURNER. 



" There is a stone-faced mound at Kabah nearly 200 feet square at the 
base, and with a row of ruined apartments all around it. A few Imndred 

yards from the mound is a terrace about 
twenty feet high and measuring 150 by 200 
feet on the top. There is a ruined building 
on this esplanade which was evidently of 
great beauty and large proportions when it 
was built. It was beautifully ornamented, 
according to the account of Mr. Stephens, 
who says, ' The cornice running over the 
door-ways, tried by the severest rules of art 
recognized among us, would embellish the 
architecture of any known era.' He calls 
attention to the fact that while at Uxraal 
the walls were smooth below the cornice, 
those at Kabah were covered with decora- 
tions from top to bottom. 

" In addition to the mound and the ter- 
race Mr. Stephens described three other large 
buildings, which he thought must have been 
palaces. One of them was three stories in height, each story being nar- 
rower and shorter than the one be- 
low it. It was 147 feet long by 106 
wide, and built in a manner that 
would be creditable to any archi- 
tect of any age or country. 

"Another building on a high 
terrace was 164 feet long but quite 
narrow in proportion, and a pecu- 
liarity of it was that it had wide 
door- ways, with pillars in the centre 
for support. One terrace 800 feet 
by 100 was found, with several fine 
buildings upon it. The work of 
making the terraces alone, without 
considering the buildings, must 
have been something enormous. 
But all trace of the builders has gone, and no one can tell to-day what 
is their history. 

" A few years ago (June, 1881), Mr. Ay me, the American Consul at 




MAYA SCULPTURE (pROFILE). 



A QUESTION OF ANTIQUITY. 



521 



Merida, visited Kabah and made a remarkable discovery. He found on 
one of the walls of a ruined building a rude painting of a man mounted 
on a horse. As the horse was unknown in Yucatan until after the arrival 
of the Spaniards, M. Charnay argues from this discovery that the ruins of 
Kabah are not of great antiquity, and that the painting was made during 
or since the Conquest by a native artist. On the other hand, Dr. Le 
Plongeon argues that the work is of very great age, and he refers to some 
of the hierogly]3hics in proof of his belief. 

"You can take your choice between two experts, one placing the age 
of the painting at less than 400 years, and the other at two or three thou- 
sand years and perhaps more. For our part we prefer to believe in the 




RUINED ARCH AT KABAH. 



one who maintains that Kabah was an old city when the Eomans built 
the Coliseum, and had begun to decay long before Mohammed founded 
the religion of Islam. 

"We must not forget- to mention a beautiful arch at Kabah which is 
wonderfully suggestive of the triumphal arches of the Romans and other 



522 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




FA9ADE OP EL CASTILLO. 



European nations. It stands apart from the other structures, and this fact 
leads explorers to believe that it was built to commemorate an important 
event in the history of the people or of one of its rulers. The centre of 
the arch has fallen in, but the massive columns remain and show that it 
was firmly built. The arch is not the straight-sided one of the Mayas, but 
curves like the Greek and Roman arch. What a pity the crown is gone, 
so that we do not know whether it was built with a key-stone or not ! 



EUINS OF CHICHEN-ITZA. 



523 



" From Kabali let us go to Chichen-Itza. We will go in imagination 
rather than in reality, as the ruins are in the region of the rebellious 
Indians, and it isn't safe at all times to venture there. Let us call the 
place Chichen ' for short.' 

" It lies about thirty miles west of Yalladolid, which was once a pros- 
perous city and contained the first cotton-mill ever erected in Yucatan. 
Valladolid was deserted at the time of the rebellion of the Indians in 1846, 
and has never regained its former population. The ruins of Chichen cover 
an area of about two square miles, and have been explored by Stephens, 




BASS-RELIEF, CHICHEN-ITZA. 



]^orman, Charnay, Le Plongeon, and others ; and the historians say that 
the Spanish army that conquered Yucatan occupied the ruins and found 
them useful as a fortification against the Indians. 

" There is a building at Chichen which resembles the House of the 
JS^uns at IJxmal, and has the same name. It seems to have been erected 
at different periods, and some of the explorers think a portion of it was 
altogether destroyed and afterwards rebuilt, as the style of architecture is 
different. The ornamentation is more elaborate than that of the House of 
the JSTuns at Uxmal. Over the door is a medallion representing a priest 



524 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



witli a head-dress of feathers ; and there is a row of similar heads running 
around the whole length of the frieze of the northern fagade. The upper 
story is ornameilted with panels cut into the stone, and having a raised 
figure in the centre. You can best understand this design if you look at 

a picture which we have taken 
from ' The Ancient Cities of 
the New World.' 

" Connected with this build- 
ing is one which the Spaniards 
call the Church ; it has only 
one room, and is twenty -six 
feet long by fourteen wide and 
thirty- one high, and the out- 
side is covered with carved or- 
naments, l^ot a great way 
from it is a circular building 
twenty -two feet in diameter 
and sixty feet high, and hav- 
ing four doors that are placed 
exactly towards the cardinal 
points of the compass. The 
building is on a mound, and is 
approached by a grand stair- 
case forty feet wide and hav- 
ing a balustrade formed of 
bodies of serpents twined to- 
gether. Serpents have a prom- 
inent place in the ornamenta- 
tion of Chichen, as they appear 
in one form or another on near- 
ly all the buildings. 
"A very interesting building is the one which Stephens called the Gym- 
nasium or Tennis-court. It consists of two parallel walls 30 feet thick, 
274 feet long, and 120 feet apart, and in each wall there are stone rings, 
or circles, four feet across, with holes one foot seven inches in diameter 
in the centre. These holes are opposite each other and twenty feet from 
the ground, and it is supposed that a game something like tennis was 
played in the space between the walls. Baldwin's 'Ancient America' 
says there were similar courts in other cities of Yucatan and Central 
America, but no account of the games has come down to us. 





DOOR-POSTS IN TENNIS-COURT. 



THE RED HOUSE. 



525 



" The Casa Colorada, or Eed House, is a building that would be cred- 
itable to the architects of any country and time, though it is not a large 
edifice. It measures forty-three feet by twenty-three, and appears to have 
been elaborately ornamented originally, but has been greatly defaced by 
time, and also by the Indians, who formerly lived in the vicinity. Be- 
fore the Indian rebellion there was a town near Chichen called Piste; 
its inhabitants used to go to Chichen to practise shooting against the 
ruined edifices there. Many of the buildings show the marks of bullets, 
and it is probable that the people of that town caused quite as much de- 
struction as did the Indians. 

" But the most conspicuous of all the buildings of Chichen is El Cas- 
tillo, or The Castle, which stands on an artificial hill, and is reached by 
a wide and long staircase, so overgrown with weeds and brushwood as 
to make the climbing difficult. It is the building usually occupied by 
explorers, as it offers a good place of defence against any marauding bands 




CASA COLORADA. 



of Indians ; whether it was a castle or not in the olden times is a ques- 
tion, but it has certainly served as one in the days since the rebellion of 
the Indians. 

" This is a good place to repeat a story given by one of the Spanish 
historians about an incident at the time of the Conquest. Under the 
command of Montejo, an officer under Cortez, the Spaniards occupied 
Chichen for two years, and were engaged in constant fights with the Ind- 



526 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



ians. Montejo lost 150 of tlie 400 men whom he took there originally, 
and finally the Indians laid regular siege to the place, and pressed Mon- 
tejo so hard that he was forced to retreat. 

" But it was no easy matter to get away, as the Indians would be sure 
to fall upon the Spaniards in their flight, and probably destroy the entire 
force. So they waited until a moonless and stormy night, and under cover 

of the darkness managed to get away 
and be several hours on the road be- 
fore their absence was discovered. 

" In order to deceive the Indians, 
Montejo caused the feet of the horses 
to be muffled with cloths, and lest they 
might find by the silence that the place 
was evacuated, he left a dog tied to a 
pole on which were a bell and a piece 
of meat. Every time the dog tried to 
reach the meat he rang the bell, and 
thus the Indians supposed all the while 
that the Spaniards were still behind 
the walls of Chichen. It was not un- 
til daylight that they discovered their 
mistake, and then there was not time 
to overtake the fugitives before they 
reached the territory of a friendly chief. 
" Let us return to the Castle of 
Chichen. The pyramid on which it 
stands is 175 feet square at the base, 
and 68 feet high ; the staircase is thir- 
ty-nine feet wide, and contains ninety steps. The building is about forty 
feet square and twenty-one feet high, and its internal arrangements show 
that it was probably a temple, like most of the edifices of similar char- 
acter throughout Mexico. 

" The walls of the Castle are covered with inscriptions and sculptures, 
and the greater part of them forcibly remind the visitor of the work of 
the ancient Egyptians. The columns which support the sanctuary pre- 
sent bass-reliefs of men supposed to be priests ; and these figures are re- 
peated on the walls along with other sculptures. And to make a long 
story short, and avoid the risk of being tedious, we will say that all the 
buildings of Chichen are elaborately ornamented. Tradition is that when 
the Spaniards came here there were many mural paintings in beautiful 




HEAD OF WAR-GOD, FROM COPAN. 



A KICK FIELD FOE EXPLORATION. 



527 



colors, but the pious in- 
vaders thought it their 
duty to destroy these 
pagan symbols, and so 
covered them with stuc- 
co and whitewash ! Had 
they left them alone we 
miffht have learned much 
more than we now know 
about the ancient inhab- 
itants of Yucatan. 

" "We haven't space 
to describe all the sculpt- 
ures, or even a quarter 
of them, but must refer 
anybody who is inter- 
ested in the subject to 
the books of the explor- 
ers. And we must do 
the same for the other 
ruined cities of Yucatan 
and the countries near 
it ; Palenque with its 
palace, Copan with its 
great wall and its won- 
derful idols and other 
sculptures, Tikal with its 
temples constructed of 
large blocks of stone laid 
in cement, each merits a 
separate chapter, but we 
have no room for it. 
The same may be said 
of other places, and it is 
quite possible that there 
are dozens of cities bur- 
ied in the tropical for- 
ests of which absolutely nothing is now known. We may hope for a 
revelation of the mysteries of the ancient cities of the New World when- 
ever the work of discovery is undertaken on an extensive scale. 




IDOL OF COPAN (fROM STEPHENS). 



528 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



" Explorations have hitherto been made by individuals, whose means 
did not permit the employment of a sufficient number of men for clear- 
ing away the dense undergrowth and making the necessary excavations. 
The natives are not well disposed towards explorers, and, as we have al- 
ready seen, some of the ruined cities are in the regions where the Indians 
are in control. There is a large area which is practically unknown, and 
can only be opened up by a force of men sufficiently large to take care of 
itself against all local opposition. Only by the liberality of wealthy men 
and societies, or aided by the arms of disciplined soldiers, can the work 
be thoroughly accomplished." 

Here the youths closed their account of the antiquities of Yucatan. 
Frank carefully read what they had written, and as he paused at the end 
of the narrative, Fred remarked, 

" Perhaps we may have an opportunity some time to make the ex- 
plorations we have suggested." 

"Let us hope so," replied Frank, with a "far-away" sigh as he spoke. 




DECORATION OVKR DOOR-WAY. 



530 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



CHAPTEE XXXIY. 

CENTRAL AMERICA AND THE REPUBLICS COMPOSING IT; A SKETCH OF THEIR 
HISTORY; AREA AND POPULATION.— SNAKES, LIZARDS, AND OTHER CREEPING 
THINGS.— COSTA RICA AND ITS REVOLUTIONS.— A PRESIDENT WHO COULDN'T 
READ.— HONDURAS AND ITS RESOURCES.— VISIT TO TEGUCIGALPA.— YUSCARAN 
AND ITS MINERAL WEALTH. -UNFORTUNATE FINANCIERING. — INTERESTING 
SOCIAL CUSTOMS. — INTEROCEANIC CANALS; THEIR PRESENT STATUS. — THE 
NICARAGUA CANAL; SURVEYS, ESTIMATES, AND DESCRIPTION OF THE ROUTE; 
PROBABLE ADVANTAGES TO THE WORLD'S COMMERCE; TERMS OF THE CON- 
CESSION; ESTIMATED COST, REVENUES, AND SAVING OF DISTANCES.— FARE- 
WELL TO MEXICO.— THE END. 

AFTER completing their description of the ruined cities of Yucatan, 
- Frank and Fred looked around for something new to occupy their 
attention. They were not long in finding it. 

"I wish we could extend our journey to Central America," said Fred. 




IN A CENTRAL AMERICAN FOREST. 



" So do I," answered his cousin, " but I'm afraid Doctor Bronson 
would not consent. His plans do not include a journey farther south 
than Yucatan, and besides, I don't think he would relish the idea of 



NOTES ON CENTKAL AMERICA. 



531 



making a trip through a region where the comforts of travel are as limited 
as they are between here and Panama." 

They sounded the Doctor on the subject, but did not receive any 
encouragement. His arrangements were such that he was to be in 'New 
York by a date that would make it impossible to accomplish the proposed 
journey. 

The youths cheerfully assented to the situation, and consoled them- 
selves by collecting a fair stock of information about Central America 
and entering it in their note-books; Frank said this was the next best 
thing to seeing the country for themselves. 

"Central America," wrote Frank, "is about 900 miles long, and varies 
from 30 to 300 miles in widtli. It extends south about eleven degrees 
from the eighteenth parallel of north latitude, and is therefore entirely in 




GOVERNMENT PALACE, SAN JOSE. 



the tropics. The geographers give it an area of 175,000 square miles, and 
a population of something less than three millions, the greater portion 
being native-born Indians. The whites and Creoles are nearly all of 
Spanish descent, as the country was conquered and occupied by the Span- 
iards soon after the Conquest of Mexico." 



532 THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 

Fred suggested that a census of tlie snakes, lizards, birds, and beasts 
of Central America would give a large population, as it was known to 
abound in those things to a very liberal extent. He declared in advance 
that he would not accept the office of animal census-taker, as he had un- 
derstood that the serpents were numerous and dangerous, as is the case 
in tropical countries generally. 

" I was reading this morning," said he, " of a snake of the constrictor 
species that was killed close to a hacienda where the writer of the narra- 
tive was stopping. It was fourteen feet long, and not unusually large of 
its kind. Tlie people of the hacienda said it was fortunate that the creat- 
ure had been despatched, as it would quite likely have killed one of the 
children ; and they related many stories about babies being swallowed by 
these serpents. 

" The same traveller, Mr. Wells, tells about a ceremony that he wit- 
nessed where a tamagasa, one of the most deadly snakes of Central Ameri- 
ca, was burned alive in the public square of a village. Two natives had 
found the snake basking in the sun ; one threw his poncho over the rep- 
tile while the other held its head to the ground with a forked stick till its 
mouth could be sewed up, so that it could do no harm. The snake was 
about three feet long. The ceremony took place in. the evening, and the 
village priest pronounced a malediction upon the creature before it was 
consigned to the flames. No remedy is known for the bite of this ser- 
pent, nor for that of the taboba, another venomous product of Central 
America." 

" To go on with the country," said Frank, when Fred paused at the 
end of his snake story, " we will remark that Central America comprises 
five republics w^iich are independent of each other, Costa E.ica, Honduras, 
Guatemala, San Salvador, and Nicaragua. Down to 1823 they were colo- 
nies of Spain ; in that year they formed themselves into a federal re- 
public of States and declared their independence. They continued thus 
until 1839, when they dissolved their federation and became independent 
of each other. Since then they have united again on two or three occa- 
sions, but have not remained so for any length of time. Several attempts 
at a federation (one of them in 1888), have resulted in nothing. Now and 
then the republics have wars among themselves, but the rest of the world 
goes on as if nothing had happened, as the moon did when the dog barked 
at it. 

" The governments of the States of Central America are republican 
in form, modified by revolution and assassination ; happily these modifica- 
tions are not applied as frequently nowadays as in former times, but they 



HOW TO MAKE A EEVOLUTION. 



533 



are by no means unknown. To show how revolutions are started and how 
they sometimes turn out, let us take a page from the history of Costa 
Eica." 

Thereupon Frank read from "The Capitals of Spanish America" the 
account of how the Government of that republic was overthrown, and a 
new one established in 1871. Substantially it was as follows : 

The Congress of Costa Rica had caused a railway to be surveyed from 
ocean to ocean across the State. It was necessary to seek foreign aid for 



"'H-Jhi 



r^ lii V - 




CENTRAL AMERICAN LODGINGS. 



the construction of the line, and the two banking houses at San Jose, the 
capital city, were rivals for the appointment of Government agent to nego- 
tiate the loan. 

The defeated banker was, like his rival, an Englishman (married to a 
Costa E-ican lady), and the capital of his bank was English. In revenge, 
and with a view to business, he determined to overthrow the Government 
and set up one of his own. 

To this end he negotiated with a cowboy named Thomas Guardia, who 
had made a reputation as commander of a small force of cavalry in a war 
with Nicaragua, to head a revolution, under promise of money and posi- 
tion. The army of the republic comprised about 250 men, and they were 



534: 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




BANANA PLANTATION IN COSTA RICA. 



easily overcome by Guardia, who assembled half that number of cowboys 
and rode suddenly into San Jose one morning, capturing the Avhole place 
by surprise. It was one of the " revolutions before breakfast," to which 
Central America is accustomed. 

Guardia imprisoned all the Government officials who did not run away, 
and appointed himself Dictator. Among the fugitives was the constitu- 
tional President, and therefore it was necessary to hold an election for a 
new President, Guardia being made provisional President until the elec- 
tion could be held. The English banker, who had started the revolution, 
named his father-in-law as the candidate for President, and it was expected 
that he would be elected without opposition. 



A POPULAR PEESIDENT. 



535 



Guardia concluded, from liis experience as Dictator, that it was not a 
bad thing to be President, and when the election came off he ordered his 
officers to secure the position for liim, and leave the banker's father-in-law 
out in the cold. He was unanimously elected ; 2000 votes were cast in a 
population of 200,000, and Guardia received them all. 

He was unable to read or write when he became President, but he was 
a man of decided ability, called wise counsellors to aid him, did everything 
he could for the advancement of his country, and altogether made an ex- 
cellent ruler for the little republic. 

The present President of Costa Eica is Don Bernardo de Soto, who 
was a favorite of Guardia, and is a man of good education. He graduated 




DON BERNARDO DE SOTO, PRESIDENT OF COSTA RICA. 



at the college in San Jose, and completed his studies in Europe ; and since 
his elevation to the high office he has shown ability and intelligence in the 
management of public affairs. 

During their investigation of Central America the youths met Mr. 
Wilson, of Kew York, an old friend of Doctor Bronson's, who had just 



536 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



returned from a visit to Honduras. He readily replied to all the questions 
that were propounded by Frank and Fred, and his answers may be summed 
up as follows : 

" I found Honduras very interesting," said Mr, Wilson, " and was sorrv 
that I could not remain longer. The country seems to have great promise, 




GEN. LUIS BOGRAN, PRESIDENT OF HONDURAS. 



as it is exceedingly fertile, and the mountain regions contain great quanti- 
ties of gold and silver. All tropical fruits grow there in abundance, and 
there might be a large product of coffee and sugar. At present the ex- 
ports consist chiefly of cattle, mahogany, hides, and rubber, of a total value 
of about two millions of dollars annually, and the imports are nearly as 
much. The expenses of conducting the government are not far from one 
million dollars a year, sometimes exceeding the revenue, and sometimes 
falling below it. 

"Honduras has been unfortunate financially," continued the gentle- 



THE HONDURAS LOAN. 



537 



man, " as it contracted a loan in England for building a railway across the 
country from ocean to ocean, and the greater part of the money went into 
private hands and not in the most honest way imaginable. Twenty-seven 
million dollars' worth of bonds M^ere negotiated in London, under the 
guarantee of the Government, and all that the country has to show for 
this large amount of money is about sixty miles of poorly built railway. 




TEGUCIGALPA, CAPITAL OF HONDURAS. 



Since 1872 the interest on this loan has not been paid, and probably it 
never will be ; in the negotiations the Government and the purchasers of 
the bonds were deceived, and the country never obtained more than a 
small fraction of the benefit that was promised. 

" ISTegotiations are now going on for wiping out the debt by issuing 
new bonds for a part of it, and creating a new loan by which the Inter- 
oceanic Eailway can be completed and other railways constructed. The 
President of Honduras, General Bogran, is a man of great enterprise, and 
has done much for the country since he took possession of his office. His 
predecessor had built a fine- boulevard from the capital part way to the Pa- 
cific coast, but from that point there was only a mule-track, the same that 



538 



THE BOY TRAVELLi;pS IN MEXICO. 



had been there for three hundred years. General Bogran made & contract 
with some American engineers to build a wagon-road from the coast to the 
end of this boulevard, and another from the capital, Tegucigalpa, to Yus- 
caran, the centre of the principal mining. district." 

"Please tell us about the mines of Honduras," said Frank, as Mr. Wil- 
son paused for a moment. 

" Certainly, I'll do so with great pleasure," was tlie reply. " Hondu- 
ras was the first part of the main-land of North America visited by Colum- 
bus and his companions, and as soon as Cortez had completed the conquest 
of Mexico and established himself firmly on its soil he proceeded to the 
subjugation of Honduras. From the time of the Conquest down to 1820 
the mines of Honduras yielded enormously of gold and silver ; the Gov- 
ernment took as its share twenty per cent, of the gross product, and when- 
ever a district proved to be unusually rich the King acknowledged the 




STREET IN TUSCARAN. 



good-fortune by ' decorating ' the place. This was a much more economi- 
cal proceeding than reducing the taxes or granting a sum in money for 
public improviements. 

" Perhaps you don't understand me," said Mr. Wilson, as he observed 
a puzzled expression on the faces of the youths. " When I was at Tegu- 
cigalpa I examined some old documents in the Government library, and 
came upon one containing the following paragraph : 

" ' The flourishing state of the mining interests and the large returns 



A EICH MINING EEGION. 



539 



they brought the Crown influenced the King, so that on the ITth day of 
July, 1768, there was given to the pueUos (villages) of San Miguel, Tegu- 
cigalpa, and Heredia the honorable title of villas (cities).' 

" A decree of that sort is exactly like conferring a decoration on an 
individual," continued the gentleman. " It costs nothing to the giver, and 
makes the recipient proud of his distinction, at least that is supposed to 
be the purpose of a decoration. 




.ii^y. 



OLD BRIDGE AT TEGUCIGALPA. 



" To show you how rich were the mines of Honduras, let me instance 
the Guayabilla mine in the Yuscaran district. It is about fifty miles east 
of Tegucigalpa, and near the line of Nicaragua, at an elevation of 3250 
feet above the sea-level. In the old days the ore was so rich that the 
owners of the mine did not reduce any that yielded less than sixty dollars 
per ton, and after the mine was deserted $60,000 was obtained from it by 
a gentleman who now lives in the country. From 1812 to 1817 the King's 
fifths from this mine amounted to $400,000, so that in five years the prod- 
wct of the mine was $2,000,000. In 1837 the mine had been worked to a 
depth of 300 feet, when the miners were impeded by watei\ Accordingly 
they prepared to abandon the mine, and did so by removing the pillars for 
the sake of the ore they contained. Of course the mine caved in soon 
after the pillars were removed, and the same was the case with other 
mines that were similarly maltreated." 

Fred asked Mr. Wilson how many productive mines there were in 
Honduras during the time of its occupation by the Spaniards. 



540 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



" As to that I cannot saj exactly," was the reply, " but at a rough cal- 
culation there were not fewer than fifty in the Yuscaran district that were 
once active and paid royalties to the King. In the Choluteca and Tegu- 
cigalpa districts there were fully 100 mines, so that we may safely count 
150 in all. Under the enlightened policy of President Bogran Americans 
and other foreigners have interested themselves in the mineral wealth of 
Honduras, and several of the mines are now being operated with modern 
appliances, which give promise of great results. Some of them are pro- 
ducing ore in such quantities as to fully justify their former reputation. 




STATUE OF MORAZAN, TEGUCIGALPA. 



Under the old system there was no arrangement for getting rid of super- 
fluous water and foul air. Modern pumping and ventilating machinery 
has been adopted, and the old annoyances that hindered operations or 
suspended them altogether will be of comparatively little consequence." 

" Please tell us something about Tegucigalpa, the capital city," said 
Frank. 

" It received its name," said Mr. Wilson, " from two Indian words sig- 
nifying ' mountain of silver.' It is about 3000 feet above sea-level, and 



FEOM OCEAN TO OCEAK 



541 




542 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



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is 





eiglity miles from the seaport, on the Bay of Fonseca, It 
has 15,000 inhabitants, its honses are of adobe, and the 
streets narrow and paved with stone. The most interest- 
ing structures are the cathedral and an old bridge over the 
Rio Grande, the latter consisting of seven massive arches 
that appear to be as strong to-day as when first erected. In 
the public square there is a bronze equestrian statue of 
Francisco Morazan, who is honored as the liberator of Cen- 
tral America, as Bolivar is of South America. He was born 
in Honduras in 1799, was foremost in the war of independ- 
ence, became President or General-in-chief of the Republic 
of Central America in 1835, was exiled in 1840, and assas- 
sinated in 1842." 

" His history is not unlike tliat of the majority of pa- 
triots in Spanish America," remarked Frank, as Mr. Wilson 
paused. 

Frank then asked about the people and their customs. 
Mr. Wilson said they were not materially different from 
those of other Spanish American countries. The dress of 
the natives is practically the same as that of the natives of 
Yucatan, while that of the higher classes follows in a gen- 
eral way the fashions of Paris. " While I was at Teguci- 
galpa," said he, " I attended a fashionable ball, which was 
quite a social event, as the President and his Ministers were 
there. The gentlemen were in evening dress, as they would 
have been at a ball in ISTew York, and the ladies were robed 
as for an evening reception in Paris or London. 

" Upon entering the salon each guest was presented with 
handsomely painted egg-shells by servants who carried them 
about on trays. These shells were filled with gold and sil- 
ver tinsel. Gentlemen broke them over the heads of ladies 
whom they wished to favor with their attentions, and the 
ladies did likewise towards the gentlemen. Nearly all the 
ladies and some of the gentlemen carried atomizers filled 
with perfumery. When one found an atomizer aimed at 
his face it was the proper thing to stand firm, receive the 
spray without wincing, and then join in the laugh which 
followed. The effect of the egg-shells and atomizers was 
to make the party very sociable and agreeable and break 
the ice of formality." 



INTEEOCEANIC CANALS. 



543 



Mr. Wilson was called away at this moment, and consequently the talk 
about Honduras came suddenly to an end. 

Then the youths turned their attention to Nicaragua, and especially to 
the proposed ship-canal which is to make use of Lake Nicaragua for a part 
of its route. On this subject they questioned Doctor Bronson, and re- 
ceived the following reply : 

" The idea of an interoceanic canal originated soon after the Spanish 
Conquest. In 1550 Galvo, a Portuguese navigator, presented a plan for 
such a canal, and pointed out four possible routes, those of Darien, Pan- 
ama, Nicaragua, and Tehuantepec, and it is a singular circumstance that 
no other routes have been discovered since his time. The world's com- 
merce then and for more than 200 years afterwards was not sufficient to 




A SECTION OF THE CANAL. 



justify the construction of a canal, and the first step towards such a work 
was taken in 1779, when Lord Nelson seized the mouth of the San Juan 
River, in Nicaragua, as a preliminary to the control of the river and lake, 
and the opening of a water-way across the isthmus. 

" Very soon after Lord Nelson's action a Spanish exploring expedition 
arrived at the mouth of the San Juan, and the complications arising be- 
tween the English and Spanish Governments prevented any active opera- 
tions towards the making of the canal. In 1823 the President of Nicara- 
gua opened negotiations with the Government of the United States with 
that object in view, but nothing was accomplished. In 1826 the Govern- 
ment of Mexico made a preliminary survey of the Isthmus of Tehuante- 
pec to ascertain the possibility of a canal across it, and two years later the 



544 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




RIVER SAN JUAN AT TORO RAPIDS. 



Government of 'New Grenada permitted a survey of the Isthmus of Pan- 
ama for the same object. In 1844 Nicaragua gave a concession to a Bel- 
gian company, which accompHshed nothing; and in the same year Louis 
Philippe authorized a survey of the Isthmus of Panama. 

" In 1849 an Irish adventurer published a book in England in which 
he declared that he had crossed and recrossed tlie Isthmus of Darien 
several times, and that there would be only three or four miles of deep 
cutting for the entire distance. On the basis of this book, some Eng- 
lish capitalists sent an engineer, who made an equall}^ rose-colored report 
that resulted in the formation of an English company, with a capital of 
$75,000,000. The engineer does not seem to liave crossed the isthmus 
at all, and only penetrated a few miles into the interior. The Darien 
route was explored by Lieutenant Strain, of the United States IS'avy, in 
1854, who demonstrated that the reports of the English engineer were 



NEGOTIATIONS WITH NICAEAGUA. 



545 



* conspicuously inexact,' and a canal would cost very mucli more than 
his estimates. 

"In 1849 negotiations between the Government of Nicaragua and 
our Minister to that country led to the formation of an American com- 
pany, of which Commodore Yanderbilt was a stockholder, with the object 
of making a canal by the Nicaragua route. Col. O. W. Childs and a 
staff of assistants surveyed the route, but the enterprise was broken up 
by the filibustering expedition of Walker, ' the gray-eyed man of destiny,' 
which caused the Nicaraguan Government to revoke the concession. 



•a^^?<fl 




STREET IN GREYTOWN. 



" From this time onward the interest of Americans in the canal proj- 
ect continued active. Several exploring expeditions were sent out by 
individuals and associations, Mr. Frederick M. Kelley, a wealthy New 
Yorker, sending out four expeditions, and spending $125,000 out of his 
own pocket. Between 1870 and 1875 the United States Government 
sent out nine expeditions for the survey of canal routes between the At- 
lantic and Pacific oceans, and altogether a valuable amount of informa- 
tion was gathered on the subject. 

" In 1876 Lieut. Bonaparte "Wyse obtained a concession from the Gov- 
ernment of Colombia for a canal at Panama. His concession was trans- 
35 



546 



THE BOY TRAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 




■;<rt^ 









t^'< 



ferred to M. De Lesseps, the famous builder of the Suez Canal ; and you 
know all about the history of the Panama Canal, as it has been recorded 
in the daily newspapers and other publications. 

"An imj)artial consideration of the various reports upon the surveys 
of all the routes has shown that the most favorable one for a ship-canal 
from ocean to ocean is that across l^icaragua. This was the decision of 

a commission appointed by President 
Grant, and consisting of Commodore 
(since Admiral) Daniel Ammen, Chief 
of the Bureau of ISTavigation, Gen. A. 
A. Humphreys, Chief of the United 
States Engineer Corps, and Mr. C. 
P. Patterson, Superintendent of the 
Coast Survey. Briefly, their report 
said : ' The ISTicaragua route possesses, 
both for the construction and main- 
tenance of a canal, greater advan- 
tages, and offers fewer difficulties 
from engineering, commercial, or eco- 
nomical points of view, than any one 
of the other routes shown to be prac- 
ticable.' 

" Careful scientific surveys have 
been made of the Nicaragua route. 
The first was in 1872 and 1873, by 
Commander Hatfield and Command- 
er Lull, of the United States Navy ; 
and the second, in 1880, by Civil En- 
gineer A. G. Menocal, also of the United States Navy. In 1884 the same 
officer, with several able assistants, made another survey ; with all the fig- 
ures and descriptions of the different survej^s, the nature of the work to 
be accomplished in cutting the canal can be readily understood." 

For further information Doctor Bronson referred the youths to the 
printed reports of Mr. Menocal and Commander Lull, which he had in liis 
possession, and also to articles in Harper's Weekly and Harper's Magazine. 
Frank and Fred made a careful study of the subject, and the substance of 
what they learned may be set down as follows : 

The route of the proposed canal will be entirely through the State of 
Nicaragua, except for a small part of the eastern division, where it will be 
on the south bank of the San Juan Kiver, which is the dividing line be- 




EL CASTILLO, SAN JUAN RIVER. 



LENGTH OF THE CANAL. 



547 



tween j^icaragua and Costa Rica. The latter State lias agreed to all the 
conditions named by Nicaragua in its concession to the American com- 
pany that is undertaking the work, so that the question of boundary will 
not interfere with the enterprise. 

In March, 1887, a contract was signed w^ith the Republic of Nicaragua 
by a representative of the Nicaragua Canal Association of New York, 
securing to the association the exclusive right of way for the construc- 
tion of a ship-canal between -the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. The com- 
pany is allowed two and a half years from the date of the contract for 
beginning operations ; it has a grant of 1,000,000 acres of land, and im- 
munity from taxation and all imj)osts of every kind for a period of nine- 
ty-nine years. It is believed that the entire work will be completed and 
the canal made ready for the passage of ships within six years from 
the commencement of the dredging and digging. 

The length of the canal will be 170 miles from ocean to ocean. Of 
this distance there will be 130 miles of navigation on Lake Nicaraojua and 
the San Juan River, leaving only forty miles for excavation or cut- 




TIEW ON LAKE NICARAGUA. 



ting. The surface of Lake Nicaragua is 110 feet above the level of the 
sea, and to reach or descend from this elevation there will be four locks 
between each end of the lake and the ocean from which it is separated. 
The lake is 110 miles long by 35 wide, and is a beautiful sheet of water 
in a basin 8000 square miles in extent. The plans are for locks 650 feet 
long and 65 feet wide, which will iloat any ship now in existence. 



548 



THE BOY TRAVELLEES IN MEXICO. 




For convenience of description we will suppose the canal to be in 
three divisions, eastern, middle, and western. The eastern division be- 
gins at Greytown, on the Caribbean Sea, at the month of the San Juan 
Kiver, and extends to the Arrojo de las Cascades, a distance of nineteen 

and one-half miles. This division 
contains sixty-three per cent, of the 
excavation required for the whole 
canal ; it will include the digging 
of a channel through the low lands 
of the coast, and then through ris- 
ing ground and hills, where locks 
must be made to raise the canal to 
the level of the lake. 

At the end of the eastern di- 
vision a dam across the San Juan 
River will "fill the channel of that 
stream to a depth sufficient for the 
passage of sea-going vessels, and also 
create a lake, or basin, where ships 
may pass each other, and also halt 
for repairs if any are needed. In 
some places the river must be 
dredged to reach the requisite depth, but these points are not numerous 
or difficult. The river is 1000 feet wide, so that ships will have plenty 
of room for moving either w^ay, and there will be about eighty -three 
miles of river navigation from the dam to the lake. 

On Lake Nicaragua the distance from the head of the San Juan River 
to the beginning of the western division is fiftj^-six and one-half miles, 
and here there is abundant depth of water except in one j)lace where 
some rock-blasting and dredging will be needed. 

Rio Lajas, on the western shore of the lake, will be the end of the mid- 
dle, or navigable, portion of the canal, and the beginning of the western 
division, which extends seventeen and one- quarter miles to the Pacific 
Ocean. On this division ships coming from the east will descend by four 
locks, while those from the west will rise by the same means. The last 
of the locks, the one nearest the Pacific, will have a varying depth to 
accommodate itself to the rise and fall of the ocean tide, which is about 
nine feet. The entrance of this lock will be of a funnel shape, and a 
port will be formed by throwing out jetties on each side of the little bay 
of Brito, and converting it into a secure harbor. 



MOZO IN FULL DRESS. 



COST OF THE NICARAGUA CANAL. 



549 



At the eastern end of the canal jetties will be thrown out in the 
same way to form a harbor at the mouth of the San Juan Eiver close 
to the old harbor of Greytown, which has been partially filled by the 
sands brought down by the river, and has a depth of only twenty-one 
feet at its entrance. The current of the river will be utilized for wash- 
ing out the entrance of this harbor, just as that of the Mississippi was util- 
ized by Captain Eads for deepening the passes of the great " Father of 
Waters " at its mouth. 

Frank and Fred made careful note of the above, and then asked Doc- 
tor Bronson how much it was expected the canal would cost, and how the 
profits had been calculated. 

" The estimates of the engineers," was the reply, " place the cost of 
the whole work at $60,000,000 in round figures ; some of them make it 




FORT SAN CARLOS. 



ten or twelve millions less, but as estimates nearly always fall short of 
the actual cost, we will suppose that the figures are $100,000,000, I 
think it is safe to say the canal can be built for that amount of money." 

" How does that compare with the Suez and the Panama canals ?" 
Fred asked. 

" The cost of the Suez Canal was $100,000,000, and it has been a very 
profitable enterprise. Double that amount of money has been expended 



550 



THE BOY TRAVELLEES IN MEXICO. 






NATIVE BOATS, LAKE NICARAGUA. 

on the Panama Canal, and only one-fourth the work is done ; even if it 
should ever be completed, the revenues cannot be suflScient to pay a good 
dividend on the cost after deducting the running expenses. The Nic- 
aragua Canal will have a great advantage over the one at Panama, for the 
reason that the latter is in the region of equatorial calms, while the former 
is within the &weep of steady winds. Consequently the Panama Canal will 
be of little use for sailing-ships, and they would all be attracted to the 
Nicaragua route." 

"What is the estimate of the amount of business of the Kicaragua 
Canal, and the revenues from it ?" queried Frank. 

"I can best answer that question," replied the Doctor, "by quoting 
from a writer in Harper's Magazine. He says the wheat trade between 
our Pacific coast and Europe requires a million tons of shipping, and as 
each ship' must pass twice through the canal, this trade alone would be 
two millions of tons a year. The coasting trade between the Atlantic and 
Pacific ports of the United States would add another million tons, and the 
tea trade between Europe and China and Japan, the guano and nitrate 
trade of South America, the whaling trade of the Pacific, the wool trade 
between Australia and Europe, would altogether bring the business of the 
canal up to five or six millions of tons a year. At two dollars a ton, the 



THE SAVING OF DISTANCE. 



551 



toll that is charged by the Suez Canal, there would be a revenue of ten 
or twelve million dollars without considering the growth of the world's 
commerce from year to year. It is estimated that the running expenses 
and repairs to the canal would not exceed half a million dollars annually, 
so that there would be a good profit on the outlay of $100,000,000." 

Fred asked what saving of distances would be effected by the canal. 

" Between the Atlantic and Pacific ports of the United States," was 
the reply, " the saving would be 8000 or 9000 miles over the Cape Horn 
route. From New York to ports in Asia and Australasia there would be 
a saving of 500 to 3000 miles over any route except by Suez, and between 
Europe and Japan sailing-vessels will save 3000 miles by taking the ISTic- 
aragua route. There can be no reasonable doubt that the world's coih- 




CKNTRAL AMERICAN HACIENDA. 



merce will be greatly benefited by the opening of the j)roposed canal, and 
in a few years we may see it operated to its full capacity, of every year 
passing eleven thousand ships from ocean to ocean." 

Fred was ready with another question, but before it was put a friend 
called to tell them that a steamer for Havana and ]^ew York had just 
arrived at Progreso, apd would leave in a few hours. 

Nicaraguan canals and all other Central American subjects were 



552 



THE BOY TKAVELLERS IN MEXICO. 



dropped, and preparations immediately made for departure. Already 
their farewell calls had been made on friends and acquaintances at Mer- 
ida, baggage was quickly in readiness, they were at the station in ample 




BIRDS OF NICARAGUA. 



time for the train, and before sunset were on the deck of the steamer, 
which speedily put her machinery in motion, and steamed away to the 
eastward. 

And so ended the tour of the Boy Travellers in Mexico. The land of 
the Aztecs and Toltecs disappeared in darkness and distance, and when 
morning dawned only sea and sky were visible from the deck of the 
vessel. 

" Wonder what country we will see next ?" said Fred. 

" Quien sabe ?" was the laconic reply. 



THE END. 



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